Restart
by LynxOnSmoothies
Summary: In which the Batter succeeds and remembers why he did it all. Spoilers for the End of the Game. BatterxPlayer. Image by Hornet-san on zerochan. Rated for depictions of murder, obsession, potentially disturbing scenes, genocide and brutal violence. Warnings provided by chapter.
1. zone 1: RESTART

**WARNING: Rated T for mentions of death and disturbing themes. **

* * *

It was done. It was almost over; all he had to do now was pull the switch. He had to turn it all off, start the world over. That was his mission, the reason he had been guided through his task so efficiently.

Guided... Yes, his little puppeteer was quite adept at combat, at purification. Oblivious to it all, only doing what was needed to complete the assignment. Yes, his little puppeteer had been quite easy to manipulate. Did that make him the puppet or the puppet master? Hm, it was of no matter; his task was complete.

Hand over the switch, he paused. Where was his precious little puppeteer? The Batter had not seen her since he had smashed the cat with his claws and bat. How could be have been so lax in her safety? It was everything. Turning around, he spied her sitting against the wall, holding the cat's limp corpse.

Striding over to her, he could see her shoulders shaking in silent sobs. It brought a pain to his chest; his pure little puppeteer, his infallible Player, was hurting. Had the cat, the Judge, hurt her during his battle? Rushing over, he picked her up, searching over her skin for injuries. There were none, but he still cradled her small form to his body.

A wracking sob. "Batter..." He pulled her tighter to him, silently willing his Player to speak. What had her so distraught? "Batter... Are we doing what's right? We've done so much bad, is it really all worth it?" He locked his arms, closing his eyes.

Yes, they were doing bad things, but for all the right reasons. The world had stagnated, had become filled with sin and fear; it was his duty as the Batter to fix it. It always had been, he had been told this since he had been created.

This brought the smallest of frowns to his face. It was odd, but he could barely remember a time before his task. Faint wisps of memory, sounds and flashes sight, but nothing truly solid. Odd, but it did not matter to him much. Life was nothing before his Player was assigned to help him with his task, to help him fix it all.

"Yes, it will all be worth it." Standing up, he carried her over to the switch. He felt himself begin to shift, his body growing taller, arms growing longer, fingers growing sharper. His face elongating, stretching to fit his pointed teeth. He had nothing left to hide anymore, it was all over and done with. His four eyes glanced down at his puppeteer, slightly worried; she still hadn't stopped crying, it was just softer now.

Resolve hardened, the Batter grabbed the switch. Her work, her suffering, it was all for this moment. This was the culmination of all of their hard work, all of it soon to be worth it. He stared down at his Player, who looked up at him with teary eyes. There was no hint of fear, no disgust at his form. No, his Player was always so accepting of his actions, no matter how gruesome they were. No matter how many times he had eaten the flesh raw, his teeth and bat stained red with blood. No matter how many times he had killed and killed and ate and ate, she did not judge his actions. She only accepted, his little puppeteer.

And now he would be leaving her. Or she would be leaving him, which ever turned out to be correct. His mission was done, she would have no reason to stay and he... Well, after the switch was flipped, there would be nothing from this world left. Including him.

He didn't want to leave her, and he wouldn't let her leave him, but he had to finish his task. He had been assigned this quest, with her, and she was counting on him to finish it. To make it all stop, and so he would. For his Player.

**The switch is now OFF.**

And the Batter remembered.

He remembered it all, all of the times they had gone through this same script. All the times the Player had cried over the corpse of the Judge, how many times she had pitied Valerie, how many times he had killed the Queen. Oh, how he remembered.

He remembered all the screams, hundreds and hundreds of screams from the same Elsens, killed over and over and over in the exact same way again and again. Him meeting her again and again and again, each time feeling awe and joy and pure emotions and oh... It was _fantastic_. Because the Batter knew, in that moment.

She never got to leave him, he never had to leave her. It all just kept repeating over and over and over again. He never remembered until the quest was done, but that made it all the more sweet. It was a reset of everything, back to the beginning of their story. Because that's what it really was, _their_ story. It had nothing to do with the rest of the world; the Elsens, Dedan, Enoch, Japhet, the Queen, Hugo, Valarie, Judge, Zacharie, the Specters, none of them mattered.

It was all about him, meeting her over and over and over and over and over again. Him, doing his task, with her there over and over and over and over and over again. Her leading him through everything over and over and over and over and over again. It was perfect, over and over and over and over and over again, every single time it happened. She was there, every single time, never changing. Always accepting him and his actions.

He could stop the cycle, let her go, let the world take its course after resetting the world. He never would, it would mean never seeing her again, her smiles, her tears, her purity. He could never let that all go, the one bright thing in all of his existences.

"Will you restart?" He spun around, eyes piercing the darkness to find the familiar voice. "Will you finally let us all go?" The Batter's snout grew into a terrible grin.

"Zacharie, you know better than to ask. " Standing tall, the Batter towered over Zacharie, whose eyes saddened behind his mask. He had known the Batter would answer as he always did, but he hoped that one day, one gloriously beautiful day, he would stop the loop.

"Restart the story."

* * *

**Your name is (), correct?**

**Welcome then, ().**

The Batter waited, patiently, as light bloomed around him. He was being transported to Zone 0, to meet his Player. This being, who would lead and assist him to his goal was of the utmost importance. Without them, he would not be able to fully complete his mission. He had to keep them safe as they drew him through to the end, and only then would he be able to purify the world fully.

**This being is known as The Batter. You have been assigned to assist him.**

**The Batter has a very important mission, be sure he accomplishes it.**

**Zone 0 is his first destination. Good luck.**

**For more information, find the one called "The Judge".**

* * *

The yellow ground under his feet was surprisingly firm, as he waited. It was only a few moments, before a burst of light and sound appeared at his side. Turning, he was surprised to see a small woman, looking at him with large eyes. His surprise was soon over taken by his awe; he could see the pureness pouring out of her skin, brushing against his impure skin, making his hold on his disguise ripple faintly.

Joy soon filled him, for reasons he did not fully understand. Was it because she was the embodiment of what he had set out to do, or was it that her arrival heralded the completion of his quest, when it finally ended? He was uncertain, but he knew; this little Player held the fate of this world in her little hands. He had to ensure her safety and health, for his mission, for this world... And oddly enough, for himself.

But not really, because that didn't make sense.

* * *

Okay, so I got caught by OFF, and had this little fic pop up in my mind. Helpfully, I might add, because it kick-started my ideas for other stories I have going right now. Anyway, leave a review on what you thought. It makes me happy to know your opinions.


	2. zone 2: REPLAY

Hey everyone. So I decided to continue this as an actual story, due to a request and my own interest.

So notes. This is a THIRD-PERSON VIEW, with touches of BATTER VIEW. That should clear up any weirdness right there.

Also, the dialogue will for the most part stick with the game, with some minor changes or additions, with the exception of non-cannon moments.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Off, or the affiliated characters. I only own the vague Player character.

**WARNING: Rated T for Obsession.**

* * *

He watched her intently, as she fidgeted under his gaze. He just couldn't help himself, the purity radiating off her skin was mesmerizing.

"Umm…" Her quiet mumble commanded his attention, not that she didn't already have it. "Could you," she peered up from under her lashes, playing with her hands. "Umm, could you stop…" She trailed off, eyes darting ahead of them. "Ah!"

Batter whipped his head around, shoulders tense as he grasped his bat. What was it? What had distressed her? No matter, it wouldn't get near his Player. No, never. To the Batter's surprise—and slight dismay—there was no threat immediately visible. Only a small white cat, which on closer inspection was seen to be grinning quite widely.

The cat padded over, sitting down with a paw lifted to his chin. Batter moved slightly in front of his Player, ignoring her exasperated look. This was a potential threat, and no matter _how_ big the threat, it would _**not**_ touch his Player.

"There cannot be any other living beings in Zone 0, so I must assume that you are only a mere figment of my imagination," the cat drawled, eyes lazily tracing over the pair. The Player gave a soft gasp of amazement, making the Batter twitch. What was so amazing about a talking cat? He talked too, and it certainly didn't get such a reaction.

The cat smirked. "Nevertheless, I will introduce myself. I am the Judge, and I am aching to know your name, dear elusory interlocutor." The Judge's eyes were fixed on the Player, who was too intrigued by a talking cat to be shy about it. Hm, no that would not do.

The Batter stepped forward slightly, drawing the Judge's gaze. "I'm the Batter. I've been assigned to a sacred mission." The bemused feline rolled his eyes, huffing imperiously at the Batter.

"It is a pleasure. However, it is not the puppet I was addressing, but the puppeteer controlling it. What is your name, dear lady?" His tail flicked to the side, as his eyes moved back to the Player. The Batter puffed up, not at all pleased with the idea of this impertinent feline speaking to _his_ Player.

"I'm afraid I cannot tell you, my dear felicitous feline. You may, however, call me the Player." The Batter gave a soft, low grunt. It was better than her telling her name to that mangy thing, but he still wasn't pleased that she was talking to this…._Judge_. Ah, that's right.

"I believe we're in need of your services." His eyes watched the feline, eagerly. The sooner he got what he needed from him, the sooner he could move his Player away from the mangy cat. He would just kill him and be done with it, but the Batter had the strangest sense of dread at the thought.

The Judge gave a proud grin, stretching himself languidly. "Many people are in need of my services, you know. Everybody loves cats." Before the Batter could even register, the Judge was twined around the legs of his Player. He would have been seeing red if that wasn't his normal.

"We rub ourselves against their legs and purr in the most insistent manner. They adore that." To the Batter's dismay, the Player knelt down with a soft smile, and began petting the Judge. The Batter's eyes began twitching, as a sense of jealousy filled him. That was _his_ Player, thank you very much, and _his_ Player belonged to _him_. As such, that cat needed to move and needed to move NOW.

The Batter resisted the urged to sigh. Ugh, if only he didn't need the filthy thing to find his end goal. But alas, without the knowledge the cat had, he would never be able to get there. Heh, not that that was really important; with his Player here, he could still do the job. It would just be easier if he could get to the switch, and the last thing the Batter wanted was to put extra strain on his precious, pure Player. No, such things would not do and so he needed that cat.

"I'm not talking about that kind of help." It took all of the Batter's willpower not to snap.

The Judge detached himself from the Player, faint traces of disappointment in his voice as he said, "I see… But what sort of service could I offer to an ectoplasmic entity?"

"I have a sacred mission to fulfill." The Batter drew himself up with pride, glancing discreetly over at the Player. "I must purify the world." The Judge looked at him contemplatively, all joviality gone.

Finally, he answered the Batter's proclamation. "There is no objective more laudable than yours. I accept to serve you as a guide through this area, if it is of any help to you. The Batter almost threw his hands up. _FINALLY._

"Thank you," The Batter's attention focused once more on the embodiment of his goal. "It would be most appreciated." The Judge's grin extended at her politeness, and he inclined his head before leaping up the building and disappearing into a window.

The Player turned to the Batter, seemingly more at ease after the not-so-brief (in the Batter's opinion) interlude with the Judge. "Should we follow him?" Batter furrowed his brow; why was she asking him? She was the puppeteer, she should be making the decisions. Unless… The Batter gave a tiny smile. She was giving him a choice, so as to be kind. What a pure Player he had.

"We should follow him." The Player nodded, and walked off towards a ladder leaning against the building, the Batter trailing contentedly after like a puppy. At the top of the ladder they re-encountered the Judge, who had popped out of the building to wait for them there.

He cocked his head at them, considering them. "Allow me to confess that I find you quite tangible for phantasmagorical beings. Might you in fact be creatures of flesh and blood?"

The Batter stared at the cat for a moment. _Idiot._ "Yes…"

The Judge winced ever so slightly. "So I have been mistaken from the beginning. You did not even interrupt me in my delude phantasms… This is relatively bizarre, I must say, for you are the first living beings I was given a chance to encounter in this lieu. I had in fact concluded that Zone 0 was an empty land. Obviously I was misled."

The Judge hmm-ed, flicking his tail once, twice, three times before settling. "However, there exist other Zones. And in those territories, the risk of hostile individuals attacking you in the most violent manner is quite high." His eyes flickered to the Batter. "Your sacred mission will likely lead you into these lands. Would you like me to teach you the art of violent confrontation?"

The Batter quickly shook his head, before his Player had a chance to speak. He certainly didn't want to deal with that. "No. Thank you though." The Judge nodded, before bounding ahead, back into the building. The Player looked at him curiously, no judgement for his superseding her decision, but the Batter looked away. She shrugged, before continuing on into the building herself.

Inside was a strange room, with numbers on the wall and boxes floating around. "What?" The Player said, monotone. She inched a little closer to the Batter, who noticed immediately. She put her trust in him so thoroughly, so soon? It filled his chest with pride, and his red eyes glowed. However, he put this aside for the moment, as he assessed the room.

Nothing that could be of any harm to his Player, with the exception of that deplorable Judge. Ugh, seemed he was speaking again. "Ah, yes. To pass through here, you need to use your cerebral organ. You know, the one bathing flabbily in your tired cranium." The Batter bristled; who did this cat think he was?

A touch on his arm sent ripples through his disguise, nearly tearing it in some places. His head whipped around, ready to fight—and he stopped, red eyes wide with amazement at the sight of a small, feminine hand resting on his elbow. She was touching him, a being of immense purity and purpose touching a tainted puppet. What magnanimity!

"I got the puzzles, remember? You do the fighting." With that she quickly flitted around the room, touching the four boxes. The blocks around the stairs down vanished, and the Judge eyed her approvingly.

"I'm most pleased to see _one_ of you has the intelligence required to pass the puzzles." Why, he was going to gut that cat! Had to make sure his Player didn't see, though; she had grown increasingly attached to the wretched thing.

A few more floors of puzzles passed, the Batter watching in awe as his Player quickly solved each of them, until they reached the last floor. The Judge dashed across the floor to a small bowl.

"Ahaha, finally! After all that exertion, the eagerly awaited recompense makes its entrance to the scene!" He promptly shoved his face into the bowl of cat food, and began munching. The Batter stared at the cat in disbelief, as the Player placed her head in her palm.

_Moron._


	3. zone 3: REDO

**WARNING: Rated T for Obsession.**

* * *

The Batter tightened his grasp on his bat, glaring at the Judge, who had his face smashed into the bowl in front of him gleefully. He was going to _smash_ that vile cat into pulp for wasting his Player's time! Speaking of his Player, the Batter turned to look at her as she strode out a door on the right hand side of the room. Following, the Batter found they were back where they began… and that his Player was kneeling on the ground before a chest.

"Huh, silver flesh?" She stood up with the preserved meat in her dainty hands, turning to look at him. "What a weird thing to keep in a chest…" The Batter's eyes widened. How innocent, how _pure_! She did not even realize that meat was for consumption! Truly, she was the example of his end goal.

Taking the meat from her hand delicately, or as delicately as his tainted being could, he explained. "If I consume this, I will regain some of my health." His Player's eyes widened in comprehension, before she took the meat back and it vanished from her hand.

"I'll have to make sure to remember that! I wouldn't want you walking around hurt!" Such magnanimity, to care for such a wretched creature as himself, and make no mistake, a creature he was. He could was reminded of this continually as her sheer purity caused his disguise to ripple once again. She smiled at him before going back inside, the Batter trailing after her like a lost puppy.

Slipping past the Judge, who was still eating, the Batter followed his Player through the other door. Outside was a small land bridge reaching a tiny island, barely big enough to house the red cube that sat upon it. The Batter slid in front of his Player, holding his bat tightly. No risks were to be taken with his Player's safety. EVER.

Making sure his Player was safely behind him, the Batter tapped the cube with his bat. The cube lifted up into the air, causing the Batter to push the Player further behind him. It would not harm _his_ Player.

"Here is an accessory that is going to be especially helpful on your purifying quest, dear enlightened student and sportive friend." The Judge's voice rang out from behind him, and the Batter turned to look back at him, keeping an eye on the cube. Like HELL was he going to trust the mangy feline that had wasted his Player's time. "It is a cube, hovering in midair, as you have likely noticed. Nevertheless, you will be able to differentiate it from similar ones by contrast of bad taste it imposes on your view of its clashing color, defying any sensible course of plastic arts."

The Player turned to look at the Judge, "Plastic Arts?" The Judge nodded, flicking his tail back and forth and grinning maniacally.

"You will learn about that later. However, do not judge it too quickly, because despite its criticisable appearance, this red cube is of undeniable use. Aside from rendering you the entirety of your health and competence points, it is capable of saving your progress and sending you to the nothingness." Sounded like a load of garbage to the Batter, but he held his tongue as his Player's eyes widened and she gave a nod.

"That _is_ pretty useful, but what is the Nothingness?" The Batter swelled with pride. So smart his Player, but far too trusting of the feline.

"Not the Nothingness, the nothingness. The nothingness is a lieu of transition outside of space itself, where you can travel from one point to another at the speed of light." The Judge nodded his head at the cube, "I now invited you to try it out, in order to discover locations more populous than this deserted land. Open your wings, my dear companions, and hurry away towards the following zones without hesitation! Your only enemy is the fear that will grab you."

Eager to leave the presence of the chatty cat, the Batter quickly replied, "Okay." His Player looked towards the Judge questioningly and he gave a chuckle.

"Do not worry, I too travel a lot through the different zones of the world. We will newly meet one another eventually without a doubt." Joy. "Ah!" What more could this thing have to say?! "By the by, take this. This object of a curious name will be the key that permits you to enter zone 1. Have I clarified that you can at any time consult your inventory and characteristics by pressing the Esc key?"

The Player 'Ohh'-ed. "I was wondering how to retrieve items. Thank you Judge." Turning to look at the Batter, his Player smiled. "By viewing your characteristics, I can make sure you are always properly equipped for combat." The Batter nodded; his Player was so wise, already thinking ahead.

The Judge padded forward to drop a card at his Player's feet, before retreating back into the building. _Finally_. She knelt down, and picked up the card.

"The leo-key, huh?" She grabbed the Batter's hand, causing his eyes to widen. With such ease did she touch his dirtied flesh, overlooking his soiled soul in her innocence and purity. So caught up in his thoughts, the Batter didn't even notice that his Player had activated the cube until it sucked them in. Squeezing them tightly, in his panic the Batter grasped his Player, curling around her to keep her save. He was such an idiot! He had not been paying attention and now his Player was in possible danger. Another failing on his contaminated soul.

However, there was never an impact, only the ceasing of being squished. "Batter… There's a door." Peering around his Player, the Batter caught sight of the afore mentioned door. Once he was certain there was no immediate threat to his Player did the Batter focus on what she had said.

His Player, so pure and just, had said his name. Oh, how his name rolled off her tongue like the sweetest of sugars, addictive and maddening. He wanted her to say it again and again, but no, he could not be greedy. The fact that one as pure and true as his Player would even deign to say his name once was a blessing.

"Hmm." The Batter grunted, too overcome to say anything more. So caught up in the moment, it only took the smallest bit of coaxing to get the Batter to go through the door, and into zone 1.

Zone 1 was very different from zone 0. The ground was lime green, and the oceans of plastic pink. The air also seemed thicker, something his Player noticed immediately. She reached in her pocket and pulled out a bandana, wrapping it around her neck. At his inquisitive look, she explained.

"The air here hurts my lungs a bit. If it gets too bad I'll put the bandana on over my mouth and nose and breathe through it." The Batter watched his Player carefully. It made sense, in a world so impure that a being of such purity would not be able to fully survive in such a tainted world. He would have to watch her carefully, to make sure that she took care of herself and rested when she needed to. She was so selfless that the Batter had no doubt that she would carry on even if she needed to rest direly.

So he would have to keep her healthy, as well as safe, and it was a burden he accepted with glee.


	4. zone 4: RETRY

**WARNING: Rated M for graphic death, minor language and overt obsession. In text form. Reader discretion is advised.**

* * *

The Batter looked around zone 1 curiously, all the while keeping an eye on his Player. He could see a red cube floating a little ways off, and a path branching in the opposite direction.

"Come on." The Batter turned to look at her, as she motioned him forward. "We won't get anything done if we don't keep going." So driven was his Player, it moved his blackened heart. Following after his Player, the Batter could see a small train station. He moved in front of her as soon as he noticed the Elsens.

The Batter paused. Elsens? Was that what they were called? How did he know that? Ah, no matter. They were a potential threat to his Player….. Who had snuck around him and was currently talking to one. No thought to her own safety! So gentle and kind! It was truly a beautiful scene.

The Elsen had to go however.

"….and Train #1 is a really useful means of transport to get about zone 1. It can take you just about anywhere in the zone." The Elsen wheezed a little as it spoke, but the Player took no notice.

"Really? Thanks for your help!" She waved goodbye as she swiftly strode back to the Batter, who had his eyes locked on the now sweating Elsen. Good, it should know better than to dare to speak with the Batter's Player.

"Hey, so apparently this train can take us to the rest of the zone. The guy over there was nice enough to give me a time table for the train and the next one leaves in five minutes." The Batter turned his eyes to his Player, who was looking over the time table with an intense look of concentration. Now was the time.

He quickly checked the train; empty. Good. "You should get on the train. I will be right behind you; I just wish to inquire something from the Elsen." The Player looked up at him, eyes searching. She smiled, accepting his reasons at face value.

"Okay, but hurry! Wouldn't want to leave without you!" She swiftly boarded the train, leaving a near glowing Batter behind her. She did not wish to become separated from him? How noble of her to care for him in such a manner! Or was she perhaps scared of the zone? Did she acknowledge him as her protector? Such trust!

However, the Batter could warmly ponder that later. Now he had to deal with the Elsen. Turning to the Elsen, his lips turned in a gruesome grin. This was why he was impure, a monster, unfit to breathe in the same space as His Player.

But He Loved It.

His bat cracked down on the Elsen's head, splitting its fragile skin like an over ripe fruit. It cried out in pain, but the Batter's teeth in its throat quickly silenced it. Ripping flesh from the body with his fanged snout, the Batter slurped down the strips with glee. So tasty. So gratifying.

So little time.

Quickly the Batter stood up, his face reverting to its humanish form. Striding over to the plastic sea, the Batter tossed the Elsen's mutilated corpse into the pink waves, its blood not even tinting the ripples. He knelt, washing his mouth and bat off swiftly, before heading on and boarding the train. Not even a moment after he did so did the train jolt into motion.

"Did you get your question answered?" His Player's voice was sweet and soft, soothing the ragged edges of his mind, his irritation at not finishing a meal. The Batter looked at her in wonder. How could something so pure look at him in such a way? No judgement, no suspicions. Nothing.

He sat down next to her, taking care not to touch her. He couldn't bring himself to soil her with his sin when it was so fresh. "Yes," the Batter tilted his cap down further, "the Elsen was most _helpful_." His Player turned to look at him, a question on her mind. She never asked it, as she was quickly distracted by the view outside the window. She knelt on her seat precariously, making the Batter reach out towards her hesitantly. He couldn't touch her, but what if she fell?

"Oh wow! Even the sky and rain is pink!" Looking at the genuine wonder his Player expressed, the Batter resolved himself. Grasping her gently, far more gently than anything he had ever done before, he lifted her up and placed her back into her seat firmly.

"Please sit properly. I wouldn't want you getting hurt." The Player looked at the Batter, who was studiously looking away from his Player. By doing such, he missed the slight blush across her cheeks, from being lifted like she was not even the weight of a feather.

The Batter himself was panicking. She must think he overstepped his boundaries, and he did. Daring to touch his Player without permission, he was the worst kind of scum to bring his unholy flesh into contact with her purity in such a manner.

"….Okay." The Batter's head whipped around to stare at his Player. She wasn't mad? Rather, she was smiling at him, apologetically even! What impossibility is this? "Sorry," Now she was apologizing, when he should be the one to do so. "I didn't mean to worry you." Ah, that made sense. His Player was always thinking of others, never of herself. Such pure selflessness was rare in this damned world, filled with darkness. However, she was not in the wrong, and he had to make sure his innocent Player knew that.

"No, I am sorry. I touched you without your permission." The Batter gave a start at the little laugh his Player gave, as she shook her head at him.

"Don't be silly." Silly, him? Only his Player. "That's nothing to apologize for." No, it really was. "I was doing something you thought was dangerous and so you stopped me. I wouldn't scold you for that." That was a relief, but his Player was far too forgiving. What if she forgave a creature that had tried to harm her, and it did it again? Yes, far too forgiving for her own good. But that was why the Batter was here, to protect her from all harm. Even herself.

"Hey," The Batter refocused his eyes on his Player, who fidgeted a bit under his worshipful gaze. "If it makes you feel better, I give you permission to touch me if you think I am in danger." The Batter was shocked, stunned, even flabbergasted at this. She not only trusted him to make decisions for her safety, but was giving him a standing okay to touch her if necessary? She trusted him so much, her purity so bright that it near seared his sinful skin.

As the train pulled to a stop, the intercom announcing 'Now Arriving in: Damien', the Batter gazed at his Player in wonder. He would not abuse this trust.

The duo disembarked the train, the Player studiously ignoring how the Batter slipped between her and any nearby Elsens. Continuing on their way, they soon encounter a large building, with a blocked off path just beyond it. An Elsen was standing in front of the building.

"V….visitors? I… Uhm… Welcome to the smoke mines." The Player turned incredulous eyes to the Elsen as it continued on. "Uh… may I know who you are?" The Elsen perked up slightly, its worried countenance turning hopeful. "Are you an inspector?"

"No," Oh, the Elsen sagged. "I'm the Batter, and this is my Player. We've come to exterminate the impure spirits."

"The… Batter… The… impure spirits?" If Elsens had a wider range of facial emotion than scared, sad and worried, then this one would be emoting confusion. "Are you some sort of… prophet? Or perhaps a man of belief?" That was one way to put it, sure. A "man" of belief.

"Yeah. Something like that." The Batter gave a small smirk at the idea, and nearly burst with pride when a small giggle came from behind him. Oh his Player, so sweet.

"I… Who sent you?" The Elsen wheezed a bit as it gasped the question out in confusion.

"Nobody." If the Batter was less dignified, he would have shrugged. As it was, he had an image to uphold. "I'm being led by my Player."

"Ah." The Elsen turned to the Player, looking at her intently. "I don't know you. You must be a member of the superior personnel…" Before his Player could deny it, the Elsen had moved on. "In any case that's good. It means our requests have been acknowledged…" Requests? Certainly it couldn't mean to—"Here, I'm going to explain your task."It was. The impertinent thing, daring to ask his Player for favors.

"Um… You're at the smoke mines of Damien, the southern part of zone 1." The Batter gave the Elsen a look, and the Player stood on tiptoe to whisper into the Batter's ear.

"Better settle in. I think we are in for a history lesson." The Batter followed her orders, relaxing his stance ever so slightly. Not enough that he wouldn't be ready for any potential threats though.

"Here, we send workers into deep tunnels to unearth metal from the ground, freeing embedded smoke that was trapped in the depths. Thanks to a variety of tools we are able to put some of it into bottles, which the Queen sends to the other zones." The Batter tensed, drawing his Player's attention. The Queen…. Oh, he remembered her.

A light touch to his back brought him from his dark thoughts. "You okay Batter?" He gave a nod—how thoughtful of his Player—in reply and turned his attention back to the Elsen.

"The rest of it flows free, forming the air that our lungs inhale and exhale… uh… so we can live." Well, Elsens were never the smartest bunch. "As the first of four elements, it's an important element. Because without smoke, people would have nothing to breathe. Uh… there we are. And so…" The Elsen fumbled with its words.

"Finally… uh… How do I put this?" Just say the words already! The Batter was about to kill this annoying thing.

"Where are the impures?"

"Uh… yes, there we go." Oh good grief. "There are many spectres in the mines. They are becoming more and more aggressive. But uh, in fact, it would be better if you didn't enter the mines.. Because…" The Elsen hesitated, looking at the irritated Batter.

"Because what?" The Player leaned around the Batter, face curious at the Elsen's strange reluctance to answer.

When the Elsen finally did answer, the Batter could feel his Player's disbelief. "Because regulations forbid visitors to access them."

And this is why nothing ever gets done.


	5. zone 5: REPLY

AN: I recommend watching the ManlyBadassHero Playthrough of OFF. He does voices for the characters that I swear should be canon. If you want to know what I think the characters sound like, head on over.

**WARNING: Rated T for minor language and obsession. **

* * *

The Elsen looked around quickly, before leaning in slightly towards the Batter. "So, uh, here's what we're going to do." Oh please, the Batter sighed, let it be something somewhat intelligent. This was a waste of his Player's time. And his. Mostly his Player's though. "There's an annex tunnel that nobody ever goes to. But a miner went in there some time ago… And he saw something strange, he said. Nothing like the usual." Yes, that was generally what strange meant. "So I thought…" Oh, please go on. "maybe…" You maybe had a thought? Shocking. "it's the chief of the spectres." There we go.

The Batter snuck a glance over at his Player, who besides looking incredibly exasperated with the dim witted Elsen, was beginning to look a bit soggy. That wouldn't do; what if she caught a cold? He would have to nurse her back to health and—the Batter paused. Actually, that wouldn't be too bad. But he had to ensure that she wouldn't get sick. If this Elsen didn't hurry up, the Batter was going to have to intervene. Perhaps he could mention that it was getting late?

"Uh…so, there's your task. If you accept, you'll go into the annex tunnel and kill the chief of the spectres… Then, the spectres will disappear and we can work properly again." The Batter's face was dead pan, not the different from usual really, but by purity, this _ELSEN._ If it weren't for the fact that he had just recently stained himself with sin, this Elsen would be his next consumption. As it was, the Batter did not dare to taint himself again so soon with his Player nearby; he ran the risk of possibly contaminating her when his sin was so fresh like that. "There we go, there we, uh…" What, still not done yet? "Do you have any questions?" Yes, will you please shut up and let us go?

"No," was his outward response. He didn't want to upset his Player with harsh words, after all. His Player patted his arm discreetly—so gentle, so kind, so considerate—and moved forward towards the Elsen. No, that wouldn't do. The Batter subtly slipped between the two again, ignoring the dry look he got from his Player. Even if she found it irritating, her safety came first.

His Player sighed, and gave a light shrug. "We'll do it. Just calm down." Oh his Player. Far too kind and giving. She had no obligation to help this pathetic creature, but she willingly gave up her time on this important mission of theirs to assist the lesser creatures! Oh, how his shriveled up, charred heart twinged at her purity.

"Ah. Great. Impeccable." And this creature was taking it for granted. He should be groveling beneath her at the very chance to speak with a being of such purity, but no. This creature treated her like she was only some middling superior of his department. Such a worthless thing, epitomizing what he had set out to eradicate in the first place. "The tunnel is right down there. I'll wait here." Coward.

The Batter was distracted from his more homicidal thoughts as his Player began walking to the South, the direction the Elsen had indicated. As he padded after her silently, he observed her from behind. She was so small (compared to him, anyways) and so delicate. She looked to him as if the smallest of winds would push her over. He puffed himself up; he would never let her come to harm, not even in such an odd manner. He promptly deflated when she gave the smallest of shivers. She was cold, and wet and heading down into a dark tunnel.

He wasn't doing so well on the whole situation.

Striding forward quickly, the Batter scooped up the Player—wrong, it was wrong for him to sully her in such a manner—and strode down into the tunnel. It may have been dark, and unsecured, but it was out of the rain and would allow a little bit of time for his Player to dry off. Stepping down into the tunnel, the Batter was surprised to see that it was well lit.

And purple, but that was easily dismissed. What wasn't was the familiar mew he heard down the hall, and the way his Player perked up slightly. Was he not good enough? Did she favor that wretched feline more than she did him? For that matter, what was that mangy thing doing here?

Squirming out of the Batter's hold (and studiously ignoring her own glowing cheeks) the Player slipped down the hall with a smile, the Batter swiftly following. And not pouting.

"Well well, who do we have here? Is that not my dear girl the Player and her picturesque jumping jack, the Batter?" Who the hell was he calling a jumping jack? He may march to his Player's tune, but only loosely. He was the one holding the strings here, even if he did serve his –perfect, pure, beautiful, gentle—Player.

Then a thought occurred to the Batter, one so delicious he hoped he would be right. It would be the perfect excuse to get rid of that annoying feline. "Are you the specters' leader?" Oh please please please please please—

"Aha, no no, certainly not." Damn. It was made worse by the brightening of his Player at the denial. Then again, she would never think the worst of someone, always believing the best. Just look at how she viewed him. "I am only passing through, not unlike the smoke which is being extracted from this pale and metallic place. However, I believe I know where the one you are taking for an ectoplasm can be found."

"Ah, would you show us?" His Player asked the Judge so readily for help; did she not trust in his abilities? No, the Batter realized, she did. She was simply attempting to cut down on the effort he would have to expend to get the job done. He beamed internally; how considerate of his Player, thinking of a tainted monster like him.

The Judge gave a grin to the Player, and padded off down the hall. He called back to the duo following him as they went further in. "To tell the truth, I am perplexed. I think it is one of those peculiar objects called a spherical Add-On." They emerged into a larger room, and there, on the far side, was a strange ring like object. It floated there gently, leaning and bobbing ever so slightly. "I have very well tried to accroach it, but the operation has failed systematically so far."

His Player hmm-ed in thought, examining the ring as the Judge continued, turning to the Batter. The same Batter that was nearly having a heart attack at the way the ring seemed to stretch for his Player. "But I am thinking… Maybe you, one who does not have a physical order, will succeed in affiliating this spiritual entity to yours." The Batter nodded, as he gently moved his Player away from the ring. As he did so, it brushed against him and a flash of white light engulfed him for a moment. Once it had cleared, the Batter could see the ring wrapped around his wrist like a bracelet.

"Oh!" What? What was wrong? He would destroy whatever had upset his Player. "Its name is Alpha." What, the ring? Well then.

"What an exceptionally intriguing phenomenon… I must admit that I remain perplexed by this unexpected, metaphysical reaction." The Judge shrugged. "Fair enough; since it has decided to accompany you, I know only to advise you to make the best usage possible of it."

"Got it," The Batter said, hoping to move along and get the feline away from his Player. "The chief of the specters isn't here?"

"Sorry, but I fear I have to respond in the negative. Apart from this Add-On, I have not crossed the way of a single soul in this lieu." That struck the Batter as odd; had he not encountered the Elsens? Or perhaps…. The Batter shuddered. Perhaps they were so degenerated that they could no longer be counted to have souls?

A light murmur from his right drew the Batter's attention. His Player was standing there, with a small, translucent screen in her hands. She was looking at different numbers and settings on the screen, which the Batter did not recognize. His name was there, and next to the word 'Offensive' was the name Harold Bat. The Batter glanced at the bat on his back; that was the name of his current weapon of choice. Perhaps these were those stats that his Player had been referring to earlier?

The Batter felt warmed by the thought that his Player was checking up on him, even though he was not worthy of her attentions. He would never be worthy of her attentions.

Then again, no one else would be either.

* * *

I promise, more will happen next time. This one just had a lot of dialogue to cover and I didn't want to try and segway between action and talking.


	6. zone 6: REMEMBER

FUN FACT: All of the chapters so far, all of the words I have written regarding it, and I still haven't gotten more than 30 minutes into the game. Wow, huh? This is going to be a long fic.

**WARNING: Heavy feels in this chapter, a long with some potentially disturbing scenes. Rated M for semi-graphic combat, mental disorders and manipulation. Reader discretion is advised. ** On a completely unrelated note, should I bump this story up to an M rating?

* * *

Distracted by the possibilities the Add-On (Alpha, the Batter reminded himself) provided, his Player slowly made her way out of the tunnel, following a brief goodbye to the Judge. Oh, how the Batter loathed that cat; however, it seemed that getting rid of him would not be an option, with how his Player had become attached to the thing.

Outside the tunnel the Elsen they had spoken to earlier was waiting, nervously wringing its—his? Did they really have a gender?—hands and wheezing. "Ah, you're back! So, have you killed the…uh…the chief of the spectres?" The Player did not even look up from her screen, so intently examining the 'stats' she had mentioned prior. That meant the Batter was going to have to handle this interaction. Joy. Though, now that he thought about it, he would have handled it anyways, as that _filthy_ Elsen really had no right to be speaking to his Player.

"No. He wasn't there." At this his Player glanced at him, an amused expression adorning her face. He shrugged slightly; he was handling it, but no one said it had to be done eloquently. The Elsen missed the interaction however, looking far too crestfallen than any creature had a right to be.

"Oh…oh? Really?" No, we lied about it. Yes, really. "I…Bugger." The Batter recoiled slightly. How _dare_ this Elsen use such language around his pure Player! "Crap." And it kept going, too. It was settled, this creature would die. The Batter peered discreetly over at his Player, and was saddened to see no reaction to the foul language. That meant that someone had said it before in front of her, sullied her ears with silt and mud sloughing off their tongue. How wounded she must have been, to not even react to it now. The Batter's tainted soul quaked at the thought that one would intentionally say such things in front of a being of such magnanimity and purity, but outwardly, he gave no reaction. Just like his Player.

That perked the Batter up some. "I…Well, then uh…" And the Elsen was still talking. Which reminded him: murder, schedule this thing's cleansing as soon as he could. "I believe that I'll have to let you enter into the main gorges, then." That gave the Batter pause; perhaps not so soon then, as the Elsen was progressing them through the area. Definitely will still happen though.

The Player snapped her screen shut and put it away, turning her full attention to the Elsen. "Won't that get you in trouble, though?" The Elsen shifted uncomfortably, answering her question after a short period of time.

"The regulations do oppose it…but, uhm, alright uh…I…I suppose this is a very special case, as stated in paragraph five." The Elsen gave a faint smile towards the Player, eyes carefully away from the intense stare of the Batter. "So, uh… Good, well, the main mines are on the right." The Elsen pointed behind him, as the blockade in the path sunk into the ground, "There."

The Player gave a grin, and the Batter near glowed. How pure his Player was. The Elsen gave a small smile too, before inquiring "Will you find the chief of the spectres? Finally… It would be great if that was possible… Finally… yes…" His Player nodded, and slipped around him to head on.

The Batter did not immediately follow, staring at the nervous Elsen. What did it mean, "finally"? Was this an ongoing issue of theirs? Hmm, ponderance for another time; the Batter could see his intrepid—and far too trusting for her own good—Player inquiring of some other Elsens. The Batter strode quickly to her side, but only caught the answer to whatever his Player had inquired.

"There are phantoms down there… They keep us from working properly." The Elsen shrugged. "But now it's breaktime for me anyways." The Player gave an amused huff, before heading over to another of the Elsens. She had not even spoken yet when this Elsen rudely interrupted.

"What are you doing here? Are you the mine inspector?" The Batter was furious. This thing, not even fit to scrape the dust off of his boots, dared to question his Player? His Player was pure, while the Elsen was so corrupted he could see it. Yes, with his eyes blessed by divine mission, and his soul filled with duty, he could see it. He could see the way their skin rippled, not unlike his, though their skins split every so often, spilling soot into the air, before sealing quickly up. Despicable creatures that they were, they were an insult to his Player's very existence.

His Player wouldn't think that way though. He could see the impurity because he himself was stained by it, but had had his eyes opened by divinity. His precious Player could not, blinded by the innocence and guiltlessness that radiated from her skin. That holy light that glowed from her flesh had more than once threatened his hold on his disguise, but he had become more adept at handling the revolt his impurity and sin gave when he came too close to his Player.

Looking at the impudent Elsen with lidded eyes, the Batter moved between his Player and the thing. Not even letting his Player respond—this thing was even less worthy of her attention than most things, he hurried her down the path to the stairs. His eyes met the Elsen's, shivers wracking its small frame. It knew that this wasn't over.

Down in the tunnels was a break room, which contained three Elsens doing nothing. Or, near nothing; they were still breathing. _Not for long though_. His Player asked some questions of the Elsens, but the Batter did not listen. He could feel it, further down into the mines, the brushing sensation tingling against his skin. It was the sensation that the Elsens lacked, he realized, the feeling that they should have, but do not.

It made him nervous.

"Hey, Batter?" The Batter snapped to attention, insides wriggling at how she said his name so casually. She must hold him in regard to speak to him so lightly. Focus, Batter, your beautiful, pure Player is speaking to you. "The Elsens' said that the lights are out in some of the, *cough*, tunnels, and that it is easy to get lost down here. *cough*" The Batter registered what she said, and stored it for later. Ignoring how his mind and heart screamed at him for his impudent actions, the Batter reached down and raised the bandana up around her face. She was having a harder time breathing down here, in the smoke mines; probably because it was so impure.

After a few moments his Player's coughing subsided. "Sorry. I'm not used to breathing smoke." What was she used to breathing then, he wondered. He dared not to ask, however; speaking would only cause her to have to breathe in more of the smoke.

"Try not to speak, you will only breathe in more smoke." His Player nodded at what he said, not saying a word. How easily she trusted him, how simply she did as he said. It was so easy to get his pure, perfect Player—his puppeteer—to obey him. He shuddered at his own impurity, for his audacity to dare to manipulate a being as pure as she.

What a monster he was, in form and in soul.

Entering deeper into the mines, the Batter kept an eye out for any spectres. By the time they had reached the first room, he was restless. Where were they? He could feel them on his skin, and from the way his Player had gravitated towards him, she felt something too. The Batter could stand it no longer; placing his Player by a yellow box-which began floating after she touched it—and remembering that it was a safe spot, the Batter yelled his challenge.

"Show yourselves, corrupted children! I am the voice of forgiveness that will eliminate your calamitous forms." I am the force of reckoning, guided by divine souls and aided by purity incarnate. As the Batter's declaration echoed away, the room grew colder. The sensation increased, and the Batter raised his bat.

"Batter! Look out!" At his Player's exclamation, the Batter spun, and found himself surrounded by… oh. It only took that one look, that split second before the battle was begun to understand. He pushed the understanding aside; the only thing left for these was purification.

"Prepare yourselves for my judgement." And with that, the battle began. A small visor slipped down over the Player's eyes, words appearing on the lower half. The Batter felt a tug on his arms, and peering at them could see faint, glimmering lines attached._ Puppet strings_. She would control his movements, give him direction in battle as she had given to him in life, but only as much as he allowed.

For puppet strings are fragile, and work best when the puppet does not fight against it.

But for now, he would let his glorious Player control his movements. When the time came, he would snap them to act on his own. Swinging his bat forward as commanded, he whiffed the spectre in front, who swiftly floated back from his attack. The Batter could see words appear on the visor his Player wore, knowing the words before they appeared.

_Common Spectre (x8)_

_Mysterious ectoplasmic incarnation._

_HP: 10 / CP: 0_

_Light resistance against smoke._

The Batter knew those words as soon as he missed, as if they were seared directly into his mind. They meant nothing to him, but to his Player they meant something. That was all that mattered at this point: winning and his Player.

The Player made a hand motion, and Alpha—who at some point had enlarged itself and was now floating sedately beside the Batter—swung forward aggressively, slicing through one of the spectres. It gave no sound as it vanished, but faintly the Batter could hear, in the distance, a strangled choke. The Batter shifted his eyes towards his Player, noticing how she had stiffened up. _Had she heard it?_

Pondering this, the Batter came to a conclusion. _Best to act now, it seems_. Flexing his aura, he pushed against the puppet strings, sending waves down the lines to his Player. The shock of his sin against her purity made her stagger, and collapse on the ground. The puppet strings melted as the Batter stretched, ignoring the guilt he felt at seeing his Player crumpled on the ground. He had to, he needed to win.

He needed her not to know what he knew.

Swinging his bat violently, he pulverized another spectre. Alpha darted around him occasionally, ripping through one, until between the two of them there were no more to be seen. The Batter did not pause, slipping over to his Player and picking her up. On her visor, he could see another message.

_400 experience gained. Luck Ticket obtained. Luck Ticket obtained. Luck Ticket obtained…_

The Batter dismissed the visor, and looked at the glazed eyes of his Player. What a creature he was, to attack her in such a manner. This, he swore, would be the only time this happened, the only time he forced himself into her in this way. He pushed his soul into her, reaching into her mind. If she knew, she would never do it, too consumed by guilt to continue on. This was for the best.

He pulled out, a faint wisp in his hand. Opening his mouth, he swallowed the memory. It felt so good, the soft burning of innocence lighting up his insides. It tasted pure and good and delicious and perfect and amazing and he wanted more. So much more.

He wanted her everything, to eat her purity up like that memory. He would never _eat_ her, no. But he could keep her, keep making memories with her and taking them from her and eating and enjoying and… _yes._

_No._ He could not sin in such a way, taking advantage of the trust that his Player had bestowed upon him. It would taint her _it wasn't hurting her_, and it was bad _who says's? just you_ and he wouldn't do it _but it tastes so good_. The conflict pulled at the Batter's skin, ripping it open like an overripe fruit, spilling his real form out. He recoiled at the sight of his leathery, corrupt flesh coming into contact with her soft, holy skin. He set her down swiftly, and moved away, trying to grasp his human form. His claws ripped into his skin, tore through his shirt to draw blood as he curled up on the far side of the room.

He needed to be human. She would hate him if he wasn't human. She would hate him if she knew what he had just done, will keep doing. She would hate him if _she knew __but she won't know because you won't let her know, right?_ Right, she wouldn't know the truth. For her own good and the good of this world, I won't let her know the truth.

"…Batter?" The faint voice of his Player froze him. Not now, no please not now! _She will see and hate andseeand hateandleaveusaloneandnodonotgopleasepleasepleasepleasepleaseplease__—_

"Are you alright? You look scared." And the Batter's world shattered. Why? Why?_ Why? Whywhywhywhywhywhywhywhy__whywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhyWHY? Why did she have to see me like this? She will hate me. I will not let her hate me, I canotletherhateme._

The Player placed her hand on his curled up form, ignoring his flinch. "Is it because you killed the spectres that you feel bad?" _She sees me, touching me. Why does she not hate me?_

"youwillhateme" The Batter slurred out, his snout distorting the words into more of a "yoeillateme" than anything else, but his Player still understood. Slipping in front of him, she lifted his head so he was looking at her. And in her eyes, the Batter saw…._understanding._

"I don't hate you, Batter." His skin tingled at his name. "We had to do this. We had to, for the mission, remember? I don't like it either, but we must." _She did not understand, not upset about that. She is SEEING me and is not—_

"Is it because you were worried about looking like this?" The Batter recoiled from her, tail slapping the ground next to her crouching form. _See, bad! Could have hurt her, you monster, demon, disgustingsinfulevilcreaturenotworthynotworthanything._

"I am not afraid of you Batter," The Player murmured, watching with sad eyes as he scrambled to get away from her. The words made him stop his flight.

"…Why?"

"Because I have seen much worse than you, Batter." His Player's voice was quiet, as she sat down next to him. Her hand brushed against his bleeding arm, letting him know she had seen ti. _What could be worse than me?_ "I have seen wars, and I have seen death. I have witnessed monsters kill for sport." She peered over at him, bitter amusement in her eyes. It didn't suit her, not one bit, the Batter decided. "It takes a lot more than a nice" what? "guy" debatable "who turns into a lizard creature" that was not debatable "to scare me, Batter. A lot more." She passed him the Silver Flesh from earlier, before looking away.

The Batter watched as his Player stood up, stretching. "Well, I'll be over by the cube. I have to organize our progress so far. Come to me when you are ready." After she left, the Batter sat there, his four eyes glowing red as he watched her, claws piercing the raw meat in his grasp.

Why was she so accepting? Why did she have to be so good? The Batter did not acknowledge his vison getting blurry, as red droplets slipped down his muzzle. Why was she not afraid of him? The Batter shifted, his form slowly reverting back to that of a human. He shoved the meat into his mouth, carefully so as to avoid making a mess, the blood running down his throat, healing his self-inflicted wounds.

_She would hate me if she knew. It's only a matter of time before it sinks in._ He stood up, slipping quietly behind her as she sorted their progress. He reached for her head and—

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

"Batter? Why are you crying? Is something wrong? Why is your shirt ripped? I don't remember that happening in the fight."

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

"It happened at the end."

.

.

.

.

.

"Oh, okay. I must have missed it. Lucky you didn't get hurt though, huh?"

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

_It _

_Tasted_

_So _

_Good _

* * *

Okay, so some concepts have been introduced from my head cannon here that are not really explained. DON'T WORRY, WE WILL GET THERE. It is purposefully vague right now, but it will all be explained later. Something I can give a bit of an explanation for is the Italics and Underlining.

_Italicized Sentence: The Batter thinking to himself/Text from the Visor_

_Italicized Word: Emphasis_

_Italics Underlined: Mental Breakdown_

About the Mental Breakdown part. The Batter that I have portrayed is self loathing, finds himself to be a monster, lower than dirt. His only self worth-in his eyes- is the regard of the Player and the completion of his mission. The idea of losing one of those two things was not something he could handle, so he broke. This is a theme that is possibly going to pop up again in the future.

Also, the Player. Some people have expressed concern on whether or not she is a character in the game, or if she is an actual person. We will get there, just hold your horses. I gave a bit of a hint at the end of this chapter, but really. Calm down.


	7. zone 7: RECALL

EDIT: Okay, so to be honest, I barely remember posting the original version of this chapter. However, when I looked back, I cringed. So here we are, with an edited version.

**WARNING: Contains hints for future plot, game spoilers, and allusions to darker subjects. Rated T for non-graphic battle.**

* * *

The trek through the mines was agonizing, with Spectres seeming to leap out from every nook and cranny to impede progress. Every single one made the Batter nervous; what if she remembered? But the Player did not remember, only looked slightly puzzled for a brief moment before continuing on. She could feel a faint tickle at the back of her mind, but with no catalyst to trigger it, she brushed it away. She couldn't hear the screams in the distance, being far too deep into the mines. Even if she was not so far from their source, she would not be able to hear them. The Batter had tainted her mind, shutting out certain sounds from her hearing. The deception was heresy, to deceive such a pure and noble being as his Player was treasonous and vile, but it had to be done. He could not afford for her to falter in her path to the end.

The smog in the mines thickened the further they descended, causing the Batter to watch his Player with concern. His Player was far too pure to breathe smoke as the beings of this retched world did. He had instructed her to inform him of the slightest of issues in her breathing, but the Batter knew she would not—though he could hope. His Player was far too giving, too selfless and noble to stop their quest for her own safety; as such, the Batter had to watch her carefully. So intent on his Player, the Batter nearly missed the faint hiss from the dismal tunnel before them. Ignoring his Player's protests—her happiness was second to her safety, though it pained him to disobey—the Batter slipped before her, readying his bat with a grim expression. What came out made him clench his bat tighter.

That was no Spectre.

A sooty hand emerged from the dank shadows first, naught but bones and skin. It was followed by a twig-like limb, which attached to a thin body with its skin hanging by mere threads like a tattered cloth. The Batter took in its entirety, moving his Player behind him more firmly. The creature was all jagged edges and jutting angles, a contorted shape, covered in soot and leaking smoke. It's ribs pressed through its wretched skin with every breath, dust hissing out from behind serrated teeth like the air of a punctured balloon.

No, it most certainly was not a Spectre. Not anymore. This was not a good sign.

"What… What is that?" His Player's voice was muted with shock, as she gazed upon the emaciated shadow of a creature. She flicked her visor down, tilting her head as she examined it. "Batter, could you swing a Wide Angle, please?" He obeyed, the creature flinching back from the swing, and the words scrolled across her screen and through his mind.

_January (x1)_

_Ghoul with a dusty breath._

_HP: 20 / CP: 15_

_Light weakness against metal_

January: just as the Batter had feared, this zone was further along than he thought. The Batter cut his eyes over to his Player, looking for any indication she understood. She wouldn't though, he knew that—she didn't have all the pieces to this particular puzzle, not after what he did—but… The lingering fear that she would understand, that she would _know_ was acidic in his chest. He couldn't let her know; it would crush her soul, taint her innocence.

The Player was oblivious to the Batter's eagerness to remove January, which was swiftly dispatched before the Batter hustled his Player further into the mines. Only moments later they emerged in a large room, which was _unsurprisingly_ filled with Spectres. The Batter made swift work of them with his Player's masterful directions, and turned to leave the room.

"Ah!" The Player's surprise exclamation sent panic through the Batter's veins—was she hurt? Did he fail his Player?—and he swirled around, bat at the ready. While no enemies greeted his eyes, he recoiled at what he saw; his Player was holding a chain. This alone was not bad, though the dust on it soiled her skin, but the Batter could see beyond the physical sense of the chain. He could see it dripping with impurity as sickening as his own, moving with the consistency of sludge. He could not let it continue to touch her, to stain her hands. He snatched it from her swiftly, moving to toss it far away.

"Ah wait! Don't get rid of it! That's a Saturated Chain; it allows you to do a low impact special attack!" The frantic pleas of his Player made him stop. They also mystified him.

"…Special attack?" What in creation was that? It sounded like what a child would shout while pretending to be a hero. A child… The Batter shoved the memories back. No, there was no time for such things. They didn't matter anyway.

"Yeah, a special attack. It's an attack that allows you to do extra damage, or inflict a status condition, like poison or paralysis." What even. That did not make any sense; how could a chain—even a chain as soaked in sin and impurity as this chain—allow him to cause more damage to a foe? How would it even inflict a _status condition_? It was baffling, and made. No. Sense.

As the Batter contemplated this strange system, his Player had already moved on. And somehow found an Elsen. The Batter could have cried; how, in these near abandoned mines, filled with hostile creatures that attacked anything that moved, did she find an impure being to speak with? It was an impossibility, but then again, everything about his Player was impossible. She was _pure_, something that before his mission, the Batter never thought was possible.

He paused. Before? What was before? He could not seem to remember. No matter, that was the past; he had the now to deal with. Specifically the now of that impudent creature daring to speak to his Player. Striding swiftly over, his imposing frame towered over the pair. The Elsen shook, and turned to face the wall.

"I'm… I'm working… I'm being productive…" And no more was said, as the cowed Elsen did not dare to face them again. Good. He was scum; he had no place fouling the air around his Player with its filth and drivel. The Batter turned away from the fearful Elsen to face his Player. Who was not standing where she should have been—next to him, _safe_—but was already exiting the room. His Player had no self-preservation, it seemed. Then again, pure beings generally believed the best of everyone, and would not dare to think one would be the worst. It affirmed to the Batter, who had hurried to her side, that his Player was of the utmost purity. Clean of this world's failings and sins, her pureness radiating off her flesh like the glow of a star. Perfection.

Further wanderings proved nothing, and the Batter was growing irritated. What fool had built this place? It was made of nothing but dead ends, and had no purpose! The Batter paused. That actually was not all that surprising, considering the Elsens.

"Hey, look." His Player's voice drew the Batter's attention to where she stood. She was staring intently at a dimmed lamp. "There's a switch under it." Before he could stop her, his Player had flipped the switch and taken his hand. The instant her skin—soft, pure, sweet, _sweet_—touched his own tough, tainted skin, all rational thought left the Batter, even as his skin rippled with the contact. Everything was a daze as he was pulled through the mines. Looking down at his Player, the Batter could see a touch of pink to her cheeks.

That worried him. Was she getting sick from continued exposure to the smoke? Was it because she was touching him, and his aura was hurting her? Thousands of thoughts whirled through his mind, and he fretted over each possibility. Was she deficient of something she required? A light went off inside the Batter's head. Of course! She was tired. While the Batter did not require rest himself, his Player most certainly did. But where to go to ensure she could sleep? He could not let her rest on the floor; he still felt guilty that he had laid her on the ground earlier when he—no, do not think about it. The temptation would be too great.

When the Batter resurfaced from his thoughts—he seemed to be quite oblivious lately, which was highly unacceptable in such a hostile environment—he found himself standing before a ladder, which his Player had already ascended. That was also unacceptable. What if there had been something up there that could have harmed her? Not only would he have her death on his head—he had many deaths he was responsible for, but the thought of her's bothered him—but his mission would have also failed. He resolved himself. No more drifting; his failures were endangering his Player and mission.

***cough***

His head snapped up, and the Batter's eyes narrowed on his Player, who was studiously avoiding his gaze. He knew the smoke was getting to her. Flying up the ladder, he scooped her up in his arms, ignoring how wrong _right_ it felt for her to be there. Her purity brushed against his sin, and burned but he soldiered on. He could not let her overexert herself, even if that meant soiling her with his sin and tarnishing her soul.

"Hey…!" A look down at his Player confirmed his suspicions. Her cheeks were flushed behind her bandana and her breathing was stuttered; the Batter could feel her heart pounding far too fast. She was clearly exhausted, and having trouble breathing. How noble of his Player, to push on without regard for her own health, such pure intentions. However, the Batter had to ensure she was hale and healthy, as she was the epitome of what he strove to achieve. He would have to disobey her wishes—though the thought was painful, of scum such as him _daring_ to defy what she wished—to keep her so.

The Batter tightened his arms slightly He was a failure; first he could not ensure her comfort earlier in the rain—which he now noted to still be occurring—and now he was such a disastrous monster that he did not see how his Player was pushing herself beyond her limits to ensure the success of the mission. Even when he was blessed with a holy mission, given a purpose to his horrible life, he still could not bring himself to succeed. What a _monster_ he was, the Batter realized, still able to faintly taste the metallic taste of blood on his tongue. How disgusting he was, with his skin holding together by threads, unable to withstand the purity in his Player's own flesh.

How worthless he was.

"Wh… What?" The stuttered question was almost drowned out by the rain, which the Batter had hunched himself over to prevent from hitting his Player. An Elsen stood before them, confusion plain on its generic face. "Did you come from the smoke mines?" No, we came from the sky. Of course the smoke mines, idiot. The Batter felt his Player shift slightly, and his face reddened. He had said that aloud.

Louder, the Batter replied, trying to make up for his blunder. "Yes." The Elsen made no indication that anything was wrong—well, that the Batter could tell; Elsen's all had a faintly worried look to them. For all he knew, this one could be having an existential crisis.

"But… But… But there are loads of spectres down there…" So this was how this conversation was going to go, hm? The Player made to answer, but the Batter gave her a dirty look, and she looked down. Seemed she felt a little guilty at deceiving him about her health, which the Batter knew she would. She was too kind and gentle not to feel some form of regret.

"Yes," The Batter finally replied, looking up from his precious burden. No, never a burden. Precious…what?

"Are you a spectre?" The Batter stilled, looking at the Elsen incredulously. There was no way in hell this thing was that stupid. It just was not biologically possible. The Batter felt his Player give a silent giggle at the question, or perhaps the look of disbelief on his face. At the increasingly—maybe—worried look on the Elsen's face, the Batter realized it was serious. Dear. Lord.

"No." The Elsen relaxed, its face still in the same expression. It wasn't done however, much to the Batter's dismay. Just shut up already.

"Then who are you? Have you been sent by the Queen? Or by Dedan?" It took every ounce of will the Batter had not to react. _The Queen_… No. Not the time. This Dedan though… He knew that name. From where, though?

"No." No, the Batter worked for no creature of impurity. He was an agent of cleansing, and would never follow orders from a tainted thing again.

"But… But… But…" Yes, _But_. We get it; your point? "You still know how to fight the spectres?" Still waiting. "You… You could destroy them?" Was such a thing really a rarity here? How _pathetic_.

"Yes." The Batter's voice held none of the contempt he felt. He was worthless, but these Elsen were _nothing_. They could not even fight to defend themselves, let alone another. They were everything he had been sent to fix. And he would do so.

"Oh. That… That would be great…" Wait what? What would be great? The Batter did not like where this was going. It felt disturbingly similar to that first conversation with the Elsen about the mines… "We… We have… uh… spectres in our big barns."

The Batter cocked his head. "Barns?" Was this not a mine? Why were there barns?

"Ah… uh… yes… Uhm… You're at the metal farmsteads of Pentel, the eastern part of zone 1." This sounded disturbingly familiar…. The Player shifted slightly in the Batter's arms, and leaned up to whisper in his ear. Her breath brushed against him, making him shiver.

"I think I know where this is going." No. She couldn't mean… The Batter's head whipped back to face the Elsen, who stood there vacantly. NO.

"Our work consists of cutting livestock in two and extracting the metallic boulders that were contained in the cadavers." He did not care. "All the poor quality metal is discarded, forming the ground we walk on." Oh, really? "The rest gets purified to make tools and other objects with." They were purified, hm? The irony. "Some of it is also put into crates and sent to the other zones, so they have tools and soil as well, I suppose."

The Batter looked at it. You suppose? The giggling from his Player was ignored by him and the Elsen, as it soldiered on. As it continued its monologue—"As the first of four elements… It's an important element."—the Batter came to horrifying realization. He was going to have to get a history lesson every place he went, wasn't he? Fucking Elsens!

"Because without metal, people would have nothing to walk on. They would sink and drown." It was still talking. "There… And thus we have spectres in the large barns…" Silence from the Batter and the Player, before she leaned up and whispered what they were both thinking.

"How did that explain why there were spectres in the barn?"

* * *

This was originally a short chapter to answer some questions brought up about headcanon Spectres. There was a major hint about what the spectres are. Can anyone guess?

Also, to the person who asked if all of the Batter's allusions to the Player's "purity" was a euphemism, NO.

…..Well, maybe. But that's later on and beside the point. It might not even happen, depending on which way I take this story.

Anywho, any questions can be asked and I will answer them via PM or in the author notes in the chapters. Have a nice day/night/life.


	8. zone 8: RESTATE

So there was a legitimate reason for this one taking so long. I have been fighting the Batter viciously for the last FOUR MONTHS because he wants to be Angst!Batter, and I do not. I think I kicked Angst!Batter to the curb finally, but we'll see.

**WARNING: Rated M for Dedan. Oh, and murder. That too. Reader discretion is advised.**

* * *

The Batter stared at the Elsen blankly, shifting his Player in his arms carefully. "I must purify the mines first." The Elsen stared blankly back at the Batter, inky black eyes swimming with a faint hopeful glint.

"Ah… Yes, but the barns aren't that big… and uh… It would be nice of you to take care of them fast, because the Queen's inspector is going to arrive at any moment…" The faint tremble in Elsen's voice caught the Batter's attention, his eyes narrowing in on the now shifting being. He subtly sniffed the air, gently setting his Player down on the ground as he watched the Elsen. Fear. It poured off the Elsen in its acrid tang, stronger than the normal nervousness an Elsen carried with them. This could no longer be called fear, the Batter realized, but true terror. What was it about this inspector that the Elsen found more terrifying than him? "So… Could you please take care of the barns first?"

"…" The Batter looked down at his Player, who looked placidly back at him. While being soaked in the rain. Barns it was then. "Alright." He would have had to do the barns anyways.

The Elsen perked up—as much as an Elsen could, being that they were perpetually sad and gloomy—and stumbled back towards the barns. "Ah! Ah! Great! Thanks, thanks a lot! The barns are directly to the right. They aren't big at all; you'll see, it's going to be done quickly." The Player smiled at the Elsen, before grabbing the Batter's hand and dragging him to the right. His skin no longer rippled as violently as it once had at her touch, so used to it he had become. He still stared though, enraptured by the sight of her soft hand holding his rough one, of the purity on her skin brushing against his soiled one.

It was hard to imagine what she thought of him. His Player seemed to be far from judging, but how could she not judge him? She had to know what he had done, would do again to others; it stained his skin and soul. Her eyes felt like they could see everything he was, so how could she look at him like that?

"Look out!" The Batter snapped to attention, dragging his Player back against him as a huge metal ball rolled through where she had been. His eyes were red with rage; that could have killed her. That almost killed her.

An Elsen shuffled over quickly, huffing its wheezing breath out in gasps. "Sorry, about, that. You alright?" The Player leaned a smidgeon back into the Batter's grasp, cheeks pink behind the bandana. He tightened his arms around her, relishing the feel and the fact that his Player would seek comfort from him after a harrowing event. He was honored by her trust.

His attention turned to his Player as she spoke, her voice still a tad hoarse from the smoke. "Yeah, we're—" There was a 'we' in her eyes; the Batter felt warmth where his heart should have been. "—alright. What was that?" A very good question, the Batter thought, as he turned his red hazed eyes to the Elsen. What excuse did it have for living, after such a folly? It was not fit to brush the ground that his Player had touched, let alone _live_ after such a mistake.

He would remedy that shortly.

"These balls are clusters of worked metal, which are going to be sent to other zones. It's uh…metallic." The Elsen trailed off, embarrassed and moved to push the metal ball back to the pile from which it had come. His Player moved from his arms, heading to the yellow box floating a bit away. The Batter did not move, his eyes locked on the Elsen with determinate glee. Could he do it? She was right there, and if she saw… well, he could fix that but he would prefer to not taint her as much as he could. So it had to look like an accident; no meals here, just murder.

He eyed the pile of metal balls, precariously piled on top of one another in a hazardous fashion. No one would question its death. Shoving his shoulder into the pile, the Batter destabilized the pile and made his way over to his Player, who was finishing up whatever she had been doing with the box. He ushered her into the barns, not stopping at the horrendous crashing and screams echoing out from the yard. His Player looked at him wide eyed as he moved to prevent her from seeing.

"I don't want you to see it," he finally rumbled out as they stood in the main room of the barn. His Player's shocked eyes faded to a soft amusement, and she chuckled at him. It was a glorious sound, ringing in his ears like a siren's call. He relished in its essence, feeling it wrap around him like the lightest of silks.

She turned from him and motioned for him to follow her, dropping the subject. "Come on; there are five Spectres in this barn." The Batter did not question how she knew this, just accepted it. After, why would a being as pure as she be blind to the existence of impure*? He glanced out the door of the barn and grinned at the sight, before moving on. There was just something so satisfying about seeing an Elsen squished like a rotten grape, upper body still flailing out in a futile attempt to save itself. So very satisfying.

* * *

It took a good hour or so for them to clear the barns of Spectres, the Batter keeping a close eye on his Player. He knew that unlike himself she required sleep, and it had been almost twelve hours since he had first met her. That gave him pause, as they strode back to the front of the barns. Had it only been less than a day? It felt like he had known her for an eternity.

_Rage_. The Batter grasped his Player, yanking her back from the entryway to the barns, ignoring her yelp. He would apologize later; for now, he was more concerned with the intense, rolling sensation of hatred and rage washing over him from outside. Feeling the tension in his arms, the Player settled down quietly, eyes watching him for a hint. So smart, his Player, so understanding of the situation. Moving himself between her and the door, he peered through the entryway, the Player peeking from around him. He let her; better she see the threat and know it than be unaware.

A tall figure strode into view, followed by a stumbling Elsen. His long military coat billowed behind him as he swiftly moved towards the barns, revealing his lack of shirt and his defined torso. Standard military slacks were fitted to his impossibly long legs, followed by large black combat boots. However, it was his face that the Batter stumbled at. Huge fanged teeth dominated his face, no nose or other features visible. Black markings went from the sides of the oversized mouth to surround the glowing white eyes of the man. Or was it a man? It looked as monstrous as the Batter did.

A light gasp drew the Batter's attention to the now bright red face of his Player, whose eyes were solidly fixed on the figure. "So…_cool_." Excuse me? The Batter swung his head back to the figure, eyes narrowed as something slithered inside his chest. Unacceptable. His Player was far too pure to be allowed to associate with that…_thing_ and he would not allow otherwise. She was _His Player_, not that things and she belonged to _him_. He moved so she couldn't see out the door, noticing her lack of protest. _Was her mind occupied by that man?_ The thought caused the slithering thing in his chest to squirm uncomfortably. He didn't like it.

"I… I… I… I am… really…" The Elsen's stuttering apology was cut off by the deep, screeching roar that erupted from the man. The glowing white eyes of the man fixed on the small, trembling figure in derision, as he towered over it. The rage from before swarmed the area, suffocating the Elsen.

"Shut your trap, you poor moron." He looked away from the Elsen dismissively, surveying the barns and fields with barely concealed boredom. His eyes skated past where the Batter hide, but lingered for a moment nearby him, eyes narrowing slightly. The Batter traced his gaze to the wall next to him—the wall where his Player sat in thought. A sharp shiver ran down his spine, as he snapped his head to look at the man. Could he sense her purity like him? Was he as tainted as he, that his skin crawled in the presence of a being worth more than he ever could?

"No… I… Yes…" The Elsen looked down, voice quiet as it tried not to antagonize the being before him. Trembles shook the pitiable being's body as the man looked down at it again, attention drawn away from the barns.

"Have they been in there for long?"

"I… I don't know…" The Elsen didn't dare look towards the man as he chuckled, sneering at the shivering creature.

The man shook his head slowly, condescendingly. "Of course. You know nothing. I could have guessed." The Batter held back a smirk; for all that this man set him off, at least he could see how foolish the Elsen's were.

"They… He will eliminate… The Spectres…" The Elsen tried to pipe in, falling silent at the harsh look the man sent its way.

"And why do they think he's capable of destroying those stupid phantoms? He thinks he's better than you! Better than the Queen!" The Batter froze, skin crawling with ripples. _The Queen…_ No, he couldn't think of her. Not now, not when he was finally on his path to succeeding. Not when a possible threat was waiting just outside the door.

"No… No, I don't think that…"

"Shut it. I haven't asked you anything." The man's voice was exasperated. "You all think you're smarter than everyone else. But you're all the same." He turned to face the barn again, eyes latching onto the spot where the Player sat, blind to the Batter. "At any case that's hardly important. The ghosts will erase that prig." The man paused, before adding in a quieter tone, "and the woman."

"I… Ah? You… You think he won't succeed?" The man cut his eyes over to the Elsen, before focusing back on the barn.

"Of course not. Nobody here's capable of fighting the phantoms, other than the Queen's officers." He reached in his pocket and pulled out a cigar, and lit it up with a match, giving a puff. "If you'd only listen to me more often, you wouldn't be in so much shit." He waved the match out before tossing it on the ground, eyes still affixed to where the Player sat. She shivered on the other side of the wall, sensing something. The Batter tensed his muscles, ready for this man to make his move.

"But… But then who… Who's going to destroy the phantoms?"

"I could've done it. But you don't deserve it. Too bad for you, you'll just have to take care of your problems yourselves." He flicked the ash off the end of his cigar, grinning cruelly down at the horrified Elsen. He took another deep puff, smoke billowing out from his mouth in mesmerizing wisps.

"I… I… No… P-… Please…"

"I'll be leaving now." He dropped the cigar on the ground. "I'll be returning to Alma. At least the people there are polite. They ain't constantly cutting you off." He glanced back at the barn, eyes still on where the Player sat.

"Pl-…Please… Don't…" He sighed, striding past the Elsen.

"Goodbye. Piss off." The Elsen moved in front of the man, holding its arms out to try and stop him.

"Don't… No… I…"

"I command you. Get the fuck out of my way this instant, if you want to keep your job." The Elsen hesitated, before lowering its arms and head, and shuffling to the side. The man strode off, only pausing once to glance back towards the barn. What a delicious sensation. If he was in the habit of indulging himself, he would have gone inside to find it.

* * *

*Now, to prevent any comments on how contrary to his previous statements regarding her being naïve due to her innocence, I'm clearing this up here. It is called Willful Blindness, and his views change to fit his model of how perfect he believes her to be.

Now, I have a very important question for you all to answer before the next chapter can come out. DO YOU WANT THIS TO REMAIN CANON OR GO OFF THE RAILS A BIT? I have two plot lines laid out, one following the game perfectly, and one going a bit off it but still sticking pretty close. Pick which one in the comments, and the winning side will be announced next chapter. Depending on which side wins, another very important question will need to be answered next chapter.


	9. zone 9: REACTION

I know this is pretty early compared to my normal updates, but I was just waiting for a few reviews to see what people wanted, since I had been gone for so long. I wanted to make it up to you all with a double update.

So the popular vote was for OFF the rails (see what I did there? I'm so punny it hurts.) and as such I will be splitting from the game slightly. No worries, it will still follow the game in structure, but I want to play around a bit with the characters. BE SURE TO ANSWER THE QUESTION IN THE ENDING AN. It is an idea I've been tossing around and was thinking of doing, but I want your guys' opinion too.

Also, this chapter is going to be extra-long, as I just want to push through the mines and get to the fun stuff. And a certain fourth wall merchant… who finally makes an appearance! (Thank goodness too, he makes keeping Angst!Batter under the rug so much easier…)

**WARNING: Rated M for graphic murder and violence. Reader discretion is advised.**

* * *

The Batter stepped out of the barn, looking after the man with darkened eyes. He had a bad feeling about him, like something twinging at the back of his mind, warning him. It made him uneasy. Leaning back into the barn he stared at his Player, who still sat against the wall of the barn in deep thought. Her face was scrunched into an expression of bemusement, and she had curled in on herself a bit. She looked even smaller than she normally did.

"Come on." The Batter's voice seemed to shake her out of her thoughts, and she followed after him out of the barn. Stepping back out into the rain seemed to draw her further from her thoughts, much to the Batter's relief. The painful confusion on her face had no place there, he had decided. He did not like it.

He drew up behind the Elsen, who was still facing the ground. Silent—or possibly not, as it was hard to tell with the constant wheezing—sobs shook its shoulders. The Player untied her bandanna from around her mouth and offered it to pitiable being. It drew in a shocked gasp, eyes darting up to lock with her gentle ones. "You… You're alive?" It hesitated for a moment, before taking the offered bandanna and drying its tears.

The Batter ignored the Elsen's question—as it was rather redundant—and posed one of his own, eyes fixed on the distance. "Who was that man?" The Elsen glanced back at the barns, a painful hope glinting in its dull eyes, before posing a question to the Player. The Batter bristled; it did not deserve to talk to her.

"And… And the Spectres?" The Player gave a soft smile at the still hiccupping Elsen, patting its shoulder comfortingly. The Batter slid between the two slowly, eyes fixed on the Elsen; it was not worthy of her attentions, or her touch. Besides, he needed information about that man.

"Eradicated. The barn is pure now." The Elsen's eyes grew wide, clearly not expecting a successful venture. The Batter held back from giving a sneer; this pathetic creature had no grounds to doubt his prowess, or the masterful directions of his Player. The insolence was _disgusting_.

"You must be very lucky." And the insults continued. What a foolish creature. The Batter drew himself up, and let his skin slip ever so slightly, opening all of his eyes. The four glowing, red eyes stared down at the unlucky Elsen, unseen to the Player, who stood behind the Batter. She did notice the paling of the grey-skinned creature, as it was rather hard to miss.

"Who was that person?" The Elsen trembled, as the Batter stared down at him. The Player leaned forward towards the creature as well, unusually interested in the answer. The Batter was not very keen on her interest in the threat—_cool , _why was that man _cool_?—but relaxed as he figured out the reason. She was interested in learning about the zone, the area they would be purifying. This man was a higher up in the chain here; it would only make sense for her to have an interest in him. It was logical; nothing more, nothing less.

"That… That was Dedan." The Player tensed, and stumbled back a step. The Batter swung his head to face her, forgetting about his eyes in his panic. He need not have worried though; the Player was far too deep within her own thoughts to notice. He moved to touch her, but she stepped away, going to sit down next to the yellow box. The Batter watched her with tight eyes; that was the man's real name. The real name of a creature so steeped in filth and darkness as _Dedan_ or himself… it carried a weight when said. It was unsurprising that a being of such purity like his Player could feel it. It was surprising that she reacted in that manner though; was she that sensitive to the strength? If so, he would have to be even more careful. _Cannot let her know, never know._ If she could feel the taint on a name, she might be able to feel the scum on his soul after a meal, after he had his fun.

If this was true, then… No, he would deal with that when it came. It might never come, after all; his Player was pure, she would see reason. He strode after her, crouching down next to his Player, who was getting more and more wet in the thickening rain. "Are you alright?" His eyes searched her expression as she faced him, watching for any signs of deceit. She had hidden her condition before out of good intentions, but he would not allow that again.

"Yeah… I'm okay. I guess I'm a bit tired." No lies, though she did seem to be considering something. The Batter picked her up, and carried her into the barn.

"Rest in here," he intoned, putting her down on a pile of hay. "I'll be right back." He moved from the barn back to the Elsen, feeling her stay where he had put her. Such a pure being, his Player, trusting him to come back for her, that even when he was not there that he would keep her safe. He had to keep her safe; for the mission and for the ideal of his life.. A being of such purity, she embodied everything he stood for.

A horrifying thought occurred to the Batter, stopping him before he reached the Elsen. What if she felt how powerful he was, and was considering his viability? He himself was powerful and just as corrupted, but what if she was considering Dedan over him? He certainly had the strength to defend her on the mission, and the Player was willing to overlook the Batter's impurity for the sake of the mission. What's to say she wouldn't do the same for Dedan's? _Unacceptable._ He would prove himself to be a better candidate, and would continue the mission with her. He would, not _Dedan_. Nonetheless, he needed more information on his…_rival._

The Batter turned back to the Elsen, who looked vaguely concerned for the Player. Upon regaining the Batter's attention, it continued.

"…He's the Queen's supervisor." The Batter looked past where the Elsen stood, towards where this Dedan had disappeared. That explained much about his aura, the weight of his presence, the rage pouring off his body. Perhaps Dedan had once been a man, or a monster like himself, but now…

"You mean specter." The Elsen looked at the Batter, face blank.

"…No…" It shook itself slightly, gaining more of a certain tone. "The Queen doesn't employ Spectres. He can't be one." The Batter glanced down at the creature, dismissive.

"But he is hostile. I must destroy him." A snap in his chest solidified that thought. It was beyond duty; something dragged at his very being to complete that task. _As if it was more important than he knew._

"No… No… Don't do that. He's an envoy of the Queen." Dark eyes settled on the disturbed Elsen. Such a foolish creature, to stand in his way, the way of his divine mission. He would not stand for such a folly, not from such pathetic creatures. "I… I… Uh… You had better go complete your work in the smoke mines… Please…" The Batter was silent as he tilted his head, eyeing the grey flesh of the wheezing creature. How easily it would split…how satisfying he would taste. _But would she feel it?_

"Besides, he is in Alma. No one can get there without proper authorization. So… Please… Return to the smoke mines…" The Batter gave a grin, making his decision. After all, _she tasted so good. If she did know, she would soon forget his shame._

"Alright." The Elsen relaxed, relieved. It was unprepared for the Batter smashing his bat into its head, knocking it away from the barn. The tiny yelp the Elsen gave was unheeded by the Batter, whose skin had split and torn. His claws tore into the unprotected flesh of the Elsen like wet paper, spilling its blood onto the ground. The Batter's tail whipped back and forth as his snout dug into the squishy insides of the Elsen, tearing its innards out in delicious strips. It was gasping and crying as it tried futilely to get away, fingers weakly dragging at the Batter's shirt. _So good_. The Batter raised his head up, licking his snout clean as he grinned down at the mutilated Elsen. It was trying to hold its intestines in, without much success. _So pitiful, these Elsens are._

The Batter took one clawed hand and caressed the Elsens bald head—before sinking his claws in and ripping. It took far too little effort to snap its neck and tear its head from its body, the Batter thought, as he swallowed the head whole. _He wouldn't need to feed for a bit after this. He would run less of a risk of discovery. Didn't mean he was not going to feed again soon anyways._ In less than a minute all that was left of the unfortunate Elsen was its tattered clothing, a few bones, and a puddle of blood. The bandana lay next to the puddle, untouched by the carnage. The Batter slipped himself back into his disguise, and kicked the remains of his meal into the ocean carelessly, the rain already rinsing him and the ground of the evidence of his crime. He gathered the bandanna and shoved it into his pants.

The Batter stood there in the rain for a moment longer, savoring the feel of a full belly. He ran his tongue along his teeth, checking for scraps that might have gotten caught, as the rain splattered on his face. How twisted he was, he mused, how impure a monster he was. _But he was seeking redemption for his ongoing sins._ Yes, he was. He tilted his head to the side, red eyes peering into the open doors of the barn. The thickened staining on his soul prevented him from sensing her purity from this distance, but he knew she would have listened.

Striding into the barn, he towered over the balled up form of his Player, fast asleep in the hay. So sweet, so pure, so innocent. Oh, she had claimed otherwise, but the Batter knew the truth. Throwing his tattered morality to the side, he lifted her into his arms and cradled her as he sat in the hay. It was so very wrong for a tainted, corrupted being such as he to dare to caress her skin, to look upon her as she was vulnerable. It felt so right though, he pondered as he twirled a strand of her hair around his human hand.

_Yes, she will be our redemption. She will always be our redemption._

* * *

After his Player had awoken, they had explored the metal farms a bit more. The Batter was examining a half of a cow—how odd—when his Player returned from looking at the station stop PENTEL.

"Hey," she said, getting his attention. No panic, no hint of fear; she was alright. "The Elsen down by the station said that the names of the metro's stops correspond to the names of important people of the past here." Her face was alight with joy, clearly fascinated with the past of the zone.

"That's interesting," he finally replied. It wasn't really, but seeing her face beam up at him soothed the wrongness of lying to her. After a little bit, the farms had been fully explored and back down into the mines. The Batter tied the bandana around her nose and mouth securely, noticing the red on her cheeks again. The smoke must already be effecting her, he would have to be more careful.

_**{{{{{{{TIME SKIP BECAUSE I CANNOT STAND TO WRITE MORE OF THE MINES}}}}**_

The trip through the mines was painfully slow, with Spectres impeding their progress at every turn. His Player did find some useful objects as they progressed; some Belial's meat, a piece of Abbadon's meat, and a curious object called the Virgo-orb. After examining it, his Player had handed it to him, saying it would increase his speed in combat. He had had his doubts, but did not question her, putting the orb in his pocket. She was, of course, right, though the logic of how a small orb made him faster baffled him.

After a seeming eternity, the Player darted forward before the Batter could stop her. "I see a save point!" Running after her—she was far too trusting! What if something had been in the room?—the Batter slid to a stop behind her as she examined the yellow box. There was something in the room, or rather, a someone. A rather…_odd_ someone.

The masked man watched them both, eyes unreadable as they appraised the pair. Studying the mask, the Batter finally decided it was a rather artistically designed smiling face—maybe, perhaps, oh for the love of—and moved his attention down the figure. A baggy sweater with a heart poorly sown on it, and a pair of black slacks adorned the figure, much to the bemusement of the Batter. The absolute Hell was this guy supposed to be?

The Batter had hoped to avoid talking to this…_interesting_ individual, but alas, it was not to be. As soon as his Player caught sight of the eclectic man, she had made her way over and struck up a conversation.

"Hello! I love your sweater!" So pure his Player was, that she lacked the sin of vanity. As such, apparently she also lacked fashion sense. He ignored the fact that he was dressed as a baseball player. The man's eyes softened from their flinty hardness as he looked down at the Player.

"Thank you, I made it myself." We could tell. The man cocked a hip out, resting a hand against it. "My my, the characters are starting to pile up, aren't they?" His Player laughed at the apparent…joke?, though the Batter was a tad confused.

"Pardon?" The man looked up from the Player, eyes darkening with an unreadable emotion as they took the Batter in. The Batter tilted his head, considering the man. He felt oddly familiar, not in the way that Dedan had, but still familiar. Which was rather odd, now that he thought about it, as he had never encountered either man before. The man rolled his eyes behind his mask, huffing exasperatedly.

"What I'm saying—" That tone had a bit too much sass for the Batter's liking. "—is that the average player—not that you're average in any way, my dear—doesn't need all these complicated and tedious dialogues." The man gave a polite bow to the Player, making her giggle. The Batter had never felt so confused; did he hate the man for mocking him and…_flirting, _if that was what the man was doing, with his Player, or did he respect the man for displaying proper reverence to the Player and amusing her?

"There should be more action and fewer questions," the man continued, waving his hand emphatically, and the Player nodded. Well, at least she understood what this manic was on about.

"Who are you?" He might as well obtain the name of the man who he had the sneaking suspicion he would be encountering on an annoyingly frequent basis. Know thy annoyance, and all that.

"I—" the man stated with far too much relish, placing a hand against his chest"—am Zacharie, the traditional items merchant that's necessary in every video game." The Player practically was beaming at the man…no, Zacharie, as he said this.

"Oh thank goodness! I was a bit worried when we didn't encounter you earlier," his Player said, looking quite happily at the man. From her reaction, the Batter gleaned that she thought Zacharie would be important for their mission, and while he could see the usefulness of a merchant, it did not explain the second part of that statement.

"I apologize for my tardy appearance, my dear. Traditional grinding mechanics and wealth gathering prevented me from coming sooner." The Player nodded in understanding, while the Batter grew even more confused. This conversation was on a whole different level. Perhaps this Zacharie was like his Player? He certainly felt more pure than most creatures he had encountered, about the same as the Judge, but nowhere near the level his Player was at. "I'll always find myself in place you're going to visit before you arrive from now on." The Player gave a soft smile of thanks, as Zacharie waved his hand in the air. Were those..._SPARKLES?_

"But enough blether. I'm not one of those protagonists you need to listen to for hours." He rubbed his hands together, and the Batter got the distinct feeling that he was grinning. "So, lemme see the color of your credits." Credits? The Batter had no idea what those were, but his Player nodded.

"Right down to business, then. I like it." She pulled a pouch out of her pocket, small pieces clinking together. "What do you have then?" As the pair haggled over prices, the Batter stared at the pair in bewilderment. _What on earth had just happened?_

"Alright so that's one Nicolas Tunic, eleven Aura's of Justice and one Radius Epidermis," the Batter was almost certain that those were not words. "That'll be 1,530 credits." The Player handed over the credits as Zacharie shook his head in mock dismay; the Batter could tell he was secretly pleased, though for what reason he knew not. "You drive a hard bargain, Miss Player." She laughed as he handed her the items.

"Oh, don't act like I cheated you out of much! We both enjoy a good bargaining too much to swindle the other." The merchant rubbed the back of his head, laughing in agreement as the Player turned and gave the Batter the tunic. The other item fused into the Add-on around his wrist, and she stowed the Auras.

"Put it on, it will increase your defense by four points." Taking the tunic, which looked the same as his current one—she had been right about the orb, so he'll trust her about the shirt too—he reached down and yanked his shirt off. "Oh." His Player's voice was quiet, and the Batter glanced at her. Her face was bright red, her eyes fixed on his torso. How innocent, the Batter almost felt like cooing at his adorable little Player. So flustered by his chest…The Batter puffed up slightly. That meant she found him attractive, didn't she? She honored him with her attentions in such a manner. _She reacted that way to DEDAN too, _a little voice in the back of his head murmured, deflating him a bit. _Doesn't matter really, you'll show her you're a better choice_. The Batter tossed his old shirt to the side carelessly. Yes, he thought, watching her follow his movements with her eyes. I will show her I am the better choice for a protector than that cur Dedan.

"Well," Zacharie's voice-which sounded far too interested-reminded the pair of his presence, and the Batter pulled on his shirt. His Player turned away from him, coughing into her hand lightly as she went over to the yellow box again. The Batter observed her, concluding the smoke was starting to get to her.

"We'll be going now," The Batter intoned, hustling his Player towards the door.

"I'll be seeing you," Zacharie waved to them as they left the room. winking and blowing a kiss. The Batter did not even try to understand. The next room held an elevator, a desk and an Elsen. An Elsen that was as confused to see them and they were to see it.

"…? What… How… Where did you come from?" It craned its neck to peer around them at the doorway. The Batter was just as confused; they had just been in the mines. This was not the mines.

"…From the smoke mines." Apparently.

"But… How… What? But… but that's impossible…" Yes it was, because they had just went from a mine to the lobby of an office building. "Not a single lamp works there, you… you can't have…" Wait, _that_ was what made it impossible? The Player sighed, shaking her head in disbelief.

"Faith guides my steps." Well, that and a very competent Player. The Batter was very lucky she seemed to know where she was going.

"F-…Faith?" The baffled Elsen seemed to have no idea how to respond. The Batter sighed, as his Player eyed him in amusement. Glad she found entertainment in how agonizing this was.

"My mission is to purify the mines. But it seems that the phantoms here are particularly numerous."

"The… The spectres…" Yes, the spectres. Those things making your pitiful existence even worse? Yeah, those.

"Where are we?" His Player finally spoke up, peering around the room in confusion.

"Uh… uh…" Not a hard question, come on now. Oh, wait. No do not start with the—"Hhh… You're at the plastic administrations of Shachihata, the northern part of zone 1. Our work consists of filling in forms. Afterwards, we wrap them up with string and send them to the courier service." Sounds like a fascinating existence. Honestly, he was doing these creatures a favor by killing them humanely. "There, they ship the packages, and in return we receive parcels full of plastic. There is a lot of liquid plastic that forms lakes and oceans. There is also solid plastic, used to make various objects."

"Wait," the Player whispered to the Batter, "the lakes and oceans are made of plastic?" At his nod she drooped. "Guess no hydration for me…" He gazed at her, concerned. Could she not drink plastic like he? Of course not! He could have smacked himself. She was a pure being, just like she could not breathe smoke, she probably could not drink plastic. But what did she need to drink? He would need to find out and get some for her; he had to ensure she was healthy after all. A _worthy_ and _preferable _protector takes care of their charge.

"—As the first of four elements… It's an important element. Because without plastic, the world would have no boundaries. People would walk and walk without ever stopping. But… but… You hunt spectres? Really?" The Batter dragged himself out of his thoughts, turning to the stuttering Elsen.

"Yes." We covered this already. "I'm purifying this zone." Covered that too, but what the hell. Elsens were stupid, better cover his bases.

"The… The spectres, I know where they come from…" That had not been covered. The Elsen now had both the Batter and the Player's attention now. "They all come from the postal service." And now they were getting somewhere.

"The postal service?" The Player prodded, hoping for more information.

"That's where we send out the packaged forms." And back to redundant conversation. Guess it was too much to ask for the Elsen to be moderately intelligent.

"Where is it?" His Player tried again, hands wound together.

"I can't tell you." They looked at the embarrassed Elsen with disbelief.

"Why?" His Player asked, confused. The Elsen wheezed in embarrassment again, before looking away.

"The problem is that… uh…" They both waited as the Elsen paused. "nobody can remember which floor it's found on." Silence. Dead silence as they took that in.

Finally the Player tossed her hands in the air, screaming, "How do you forget that!?"

* * *

So what did you think? Interesting enough? I tried harder for you all, since someone said my story was boring (it hurts, hurts real bad).

Soooooo, I was wondering if you guys would want to see cameo POVS once in a while. It wouldn't be too frequent, just for major events or by popular request.


	10. zone 10: RESEARCH

So, the votes right now still say you guys want OFF THE RAILS. This chapter is your last chance to vote for your pick though, so don't forget. That said, there will be a large plot twist next chapter either way, so….

**WARNING: Rated T for swearing. Oddly, nothing else. Unless you count Batter's general creeper-ness.**

* * *

The Elsen looked away, coughing evasively. The Player appeared to give up, and moved towards the elevator.

"Looks like we'll have to find it on our own then," she huffed, ignoring the amused glance the Batter tossed her way. He had never seen her so exasperated before, but he supposed even saints had their breaking point. Stepping into the tiny elevator, the Batter was forced to hunch over his Player to fit. Definitely designed for Elsens, miniscule things that they were. His Player had little difficulty with the tiny box, fitting snugly beneath his hunched form. Batter could feel the warm and purity pulsing off her skin, matching her heartbeat. It felt so sweet, searing across his skin; he may have become accustomed to the feeling, but that did not mean he could not feel it still.

Turning his attention away from the searing pleasure rippling across his skin, he looked at the floor selection. "Oh," his Player said, looking at the options. Instead of the normal buttons one would find in an elevator, there was a keypad and a small plaque.

_Basement—00000_

_Ground floor—00001_

_Roof—99999_

_Postal service-?_

The elevator was silent for a moment, the Batter shifting uncomfortably. He stared, baffled, at the plaque. "…Why did they not just write it down?" He finally asked, looking down at his pure Player. She had no answer, just shrugged dejectedly and entered in for the Ground floor. The elevator started up at an agonizingly slow pace. The Batter took a deep breath, his chest brushing the back of his Player's head. He moved back as far as he could, trying not to violate her space. He did not wish to make her uncomfortable with him.

After a seeming eternity pressed to the back of the elevator, the Batter was relieved when they finally reached floor 00001. Unfortunately, as they went around trying to glean any information from the Elsens on that floor, it quickly became apparent that the fools would be of no help. They were far too enraptured in their bureaucracy to even notice his Player trying to get their attention, or his own efforts. The Batter quickly wrote that off as a hopeless venture, and peered out the front door before allowing his Player through—after she had run into that room where Zacharie had been waiting, the Batter was taking no more chances. It had only been luck that had dictated that Zacharie was not hostile towards them; it rankled him. He had to do better, he had to protect her for the mission! If he couldn't prove himself worthy of continuing his holy duty, then… No, he would not allow that to happen. He had a world to eliminate, to purify for the sake of pure beings like his Player. He would not allow another to take his place.

Outside the building was a singular path of metal leading out over an ocean of pink plastic. His Player grimaced, before moving down the path. The Batter nodded, following after her closely; an intelligent decision, looking for clues to the location of the postal service out here, instead of systematically searching every floor. As they walked along the desolate land bridge, the Batter could feel a faint sensation crawling across his shoulders. He glanced up at the building, attempting to pinpoint its origin, with no luck. As it was, it was so faint he could not even identify the sensation, so it was not an immediate threat. With that dismissed, he turned his attention forwards towards the metro station, SHACHIHATA. An Elsen stood near the metro, aimlessly looking around. What, did it have nothing better to do?

"Excuse me," the Player called to the Elsen, "Can you tell us about that building?" She pointed at the Plastic Administrations building, head tilted ever so slightly. So cute, his Player, so innocent and naïve.

"Um, well… The Queen's—" Ignore her, she does not matter. "—general has an office here… But his true house is in Alma." His Player tilted her head further, brow furrowing slightly.

"The General?"

"Dedan," the Elsen answered simply, blinking blankly at them. The Player shivered at the name, and looked away, considering.

"…and Dedan was joined by Sheba*…" she murmured, much to the Batter's confusion. _Did she know his name from somewhere else?_ He stiffened sharply, eyes cutting to her small form. Was her reaction to his name more than just the weight of his impurity? This required fixing, if that was the case. If she did indeed know Dedan, then he would be a distraction to her.

That was not allowed.

With no leads as to the location of the postal service obtained, the Batter ushered his Player back into the building. Countless floors of useless Elsens were searched for clues but none yielded results. However, as they climbed up the building, the Batter could feel the tingling sensation growing stronger; it was almost strong enough for him to identify it now. His Player sighed as she input the roof, leaning back against his hunched form carelessly. So easily did she touch him, as corrupted and filthy as he was; she was truly kind and benevolent. He did not move his arms to hold her—as if he would dare to touch her without a dire need…at least, not to her knowledge—as the elevator crawled up the floors at its excruciatingly slow pace.

The roof was wet when they finally arrived. Apparently during the interval in the elevator, it had resumed raining. Joy. Stepping out and surveying the building, the Batter noticed the roof held an occupant. He subtly tried to usher his Player back into the elevator before she noticed, but it was not to be.

Her face lit up in a smile, as she slipped around his form. "Judge!" The Batter stared after her, then down at where he stood. How had she done that? He had completely boxed her in. A few seconds of consideration and the answer became blatantly obvious. Of course, as a pure and perfect being, she could easily fool his senses and slip by him. She had only not done so before out of respect, being the kind and noble being she was. He was remiss to dare to be in her presence, let alone dare to touch her as he had been. Not that she knew of his most grievous offence, that he had dared to caress her sleeping, vulnerable form. It was a sickening thought, that she had trusted him to care for her as she slept, and that he had _dared_ to take advantage in such a situation. It was his only grace that she did not know, and that he did not have to taint her to make her forget, though his dirtying of her soul never lasted long. Her innate purity washed the stains from her soul swiftly, leaving no trace of his transgression against her, other than the lack of memory.

He truly was scum.

"Zounds! You again?" The Batter tuned into the conversation at the Judge's decidedly playful remark. "You are decidedly everywhere." The Judge tilted his head to the side, winking at his Player and purring out "One could believe that you are following me." The Player laughed, reaching down and petting the insolent fleabag. Coercing his kind and naïve Player into touching his filthy body! If it were not for the fact that it would upset his Player greatly, he would have done away with the mangy thing already.

"Nonetheless," the cretin continued, "your steps have not deceived you, for you are here in a lieu that can certainly use sacred blows from your holy bat. Perhaps you are already aware of this, but it appears that they storey housing the postal service is overrun by ectoplasm." An interesting way of putting it, but the Batter understood what he was getting at. "It would probably be wise to find the storey with the intangible creatures post-haste in order to dispatch them." Well, was that not just a _revolutionary_ idea? The Judge turned to the Batter, eyes narrowing in smugness.

"But could it be that the task is too difficult for your narrow mind?" That little shit. "In that case, I may be able to provide you with some advice… To save you time waiting for him, of course." The Judge's even present grin grew as he returned to speaking with the Player, who smiled at him. Batter fumed quietly. Cannot kill the filth, he's important to the mission and to the Player.

"Some help would be welcome," his Player admitted, rubbing the back of her head sheepishly. Her hair had darkened in the rain noticeably, making the Batter more eager to sweep her inside…and away from that _cat_.

"Open widely your ears and listen, for I will not repeat this twice, not even in the midst of the most pathetic supplication." As if his noble Player would lower herself to beg this creature. "In one of the four rooms on the ground floor, all employees seem to be trained to a particular set of instructions. Additionally, if there was a choice to be made, I would prefer the lower-case over the upper-case." His Player groaned, shoving her face into her hands.

"Of course! It was so obvious! Ugh, I'm such a fool…" The Batter blinked at her, as she went about her untruthful self-demeaning. There was no possible way that she was a fool, not a being as pure as she. Naïve and easily tricked, perhaps, definitely far too trusting for her own good, but no fool.

Though he did have to wonder how that was obvious.

* * *

*Referencing Dedan from Ezekiel in the Bible. He was a war lord/monger/general.

Next chapter is the splitting point. If you want to vote about whether or not you want GOING OFF THE RAILS or STICKING TO CANON, this is your last chance. Final results will be announced at the beginning of the next chapter.

Also, since the next chapter is the splitting point, it's going to be another longer one. Be prepared to read.


	11. zone 11: REVILE

Alright. Decisions were made. We are officially going OFF THE RAILS in this chapter. It's small, but the ripple effect makes it big. Also, for the cameo POVS. I have decided to make them Omakes at the end of certain chapters; that way, if you don't want to read them, they are optional. They are just there to flesh characters out a bit more firmly. Also, to clarify, those POVs will be in first person, as you only get bits of the story from the looks into their thoughts in the main chapters with the third person view. If you have a POV for a certain scene you want to read, let me know! I'm usually down with obliging.

**WARNING: Rated M because Dedan, swearing, and allusions to some dark stuff. Oh, and some mildly explicit fights, but nothing too nasty. Still, Reader discretion is advised.**

* * *

_Floor 10258_

_Postal service_

The Batter had never heard more welcome words in his life. As the doors of the elevator slid open slowly—so very slowly, the Batter cringed—, a sigh of pure relief came from his Player.

"Thank _GOD_. I was beginning to fear that we were trapped in purgatory." The Batter flinched slightly, unnoticeable to his Player. _You have no idea how ironic that is._ Purgatory was the existence of the world itself, steeped in shame and sin. No, rather, his job was purgatory; the world was hell, its sticky tendrils of filth trying to latch on to the pure and drag them down into the muddy depths. Sickening, the depravities this world would sink to in an effort to taint another.

The duo stepped out of the elevator and looked around. "… No one?" The Batter finally asked, his bat lowering from its ready position. He had not expected that, and from the look on his Player's face, she had not either.

"That is rarely a good sign," she answered after a long pause, moving behind the Batter slightly. If the lack of life had not been so unnerving to him, the Batter would have basked in her trust in him. As it was, he had a bad feeling about this floor; the itching had grown stronger again, but was still just out of his reach. It was beginning to irritate him fiercely.

Wandering around the floor yielded no insights as to where everyone was. It was just silent, the faint groaning of machinery that was present in the building echoing in the stillness. Piles and piles of boxes lay scattered around the floor, as if in the process of being moved. The Player dragged her hand across the top of one, coming away dusty.

"Where did they all go?" She dusted off her hand as the Batter moved past her towards the stairs. He could feel something. Off the steps stepped a blank eyed Elsen, which stared at them with empty eyes. The Player stepped back; something about him was off.

"I'm the Batter. Where are the phantoms?" The Elsen gave no answer, and the Batter raised his bat, moving more centrally in front of his Player. He had a vague feeling this was not an Elsen… Not anymore.

"…I'm… I'm very afraid…" The words were hissed out with its breath, like a deflating balloon. That sounded familiar. "… Help me." The Elsen shot forward, and its skin ripped. Its head fell to the side like a discarded toy, rolling away as black tentacles shot from neck of his suit. Soot and ink splashed onto the floor and the previously white shirt the former Elsen wore was swiftly turned to black.

The Batter did not wait for the battle commencement and swung his bat at the lunging creature. Its torso made a sickening squish as it molded around his bat, droplets of soot splattering the Batter's form. It hit the ground with a dull thump, before melting into the floor, leaving only a badly stained shirt and tie. The Player gagged, looking away from the remains of the creature; the Batter stepped between her and the sight. She should not look upon the filth of this creature.

"Hhhh…" a hissing groan from the boxes had him raising his bat again. He stepped around the boxes, ready to destroy the possible threat. Laying there behind the box stacks was the Elsen's head, breathing and looking around. It did not appear to notice its lack of body. "Maybe… Maybe his suit has taken control of his… his brain." After that odd statement, the head went still before melting into the floor like its body had.

The Batter stared at the spot it had lain contemplatively. "Strange…" Turning back to his clearly disturbed Player, the Batter felt a twinge of guilt. His actions with that creature had usurped her power over him; he had gone over her head in his decisions. He had no right to do that. He, a lowly monster with a blackened soul, had no right to do that.

"Ugh…" His Player groaned, avoiding looking at the clothes. "Well, that was disgusting. Good thing you moved as fast as you did there; I certainly wasn't going to react in time." She looked at him, smiling faintly. "Good to know that you can fight without me, if worst comes to worst." Her gaze turned contemplative, as she turned her attention towards the stairs behind the Batter.

"What do you suppose is up there that could have done that?" The Batter carefully looked away from her, eyes fixing on the stairs. She was unknowing of the true reason for the mission, that Elsen's and everything else had become infected with filth and scum. She had no way of knowing that over time, it corrupted the creatures and people, turning them from sentient—however loosely he may use that term—beings into Spectres, monsters and ghouls.

He did not answer her in the end, moving up the stairs. The upper level of the storey was just as deserted at first glance, so the Batter moved off the stairs to let his Player pass. She quickly honed in on a form sitting atop a nearby work table. Picking it up, she examined it.

"Something strange is written on this form…Ahem, '_First version: they are six feet under, wrapped in metal and liquid plastic.'_" She looked at the Batter, confusion in her clear eyes. He had no more of an idea what that meant then she did, and made that very clear. Screwing her face up, she put the form back down and moved to follow the Batter as he went through the floor.

They had made it part way through the next room when she spotted another form on the far side. Moving to get it, she was stopped by the Batter's hand. He looked down at her, eyes focused with unnerving force on her own. "…Let me." Moving ahead of his Player, the Batter found he was right in doing so. Two…_cats_, maybe? Chihuahuas?... floated up from behind the table, hissing with hot air and their spines clattering horribly. His Player's visor slipped down as the battle commenced. This time, the Batter waited for her instructions; the threat was not immediate, so he would let her handle the motions.

"Wide angle, please," his Player requested, and the Batter was quick to oblige.

_Tiburce (x2)*_

_Flying ghoul with bad intentions._

_HP: 45 / CP: 10_

_No weakness/resistance_

As informative as that was, the Batter still did not know exactly what manner of creature he was looking at. Whatever they were, they were weak; two strokes of his bat had them both down. His Player flipped up the visor after the list of obtained items passed—"an _eye? _What on earth is that for?"—, and moved towards the note. She paused for a moment beside the Batter, giving him a questioning glance. He nodded, holding back a prideful smile; she acknowledged his worth as a guardian, his ability to defend her. _Better than Dedan._

"This doesn't make any more sense than the first one," his Player declared. "_'Second version: They are eight, and they have long beards. They watch what is happening from their high silver spheres'._" His Player looked thoughtful, before muttering to herself "Six…eight."

As she stood there in thought, the Batter cleared the rest of the floor. Once assured nothing would get her if he was not with her, he descended the second set of stairs and found an Aura of Justice. How he could find an Aura, he did not know. He just did. He gave it to his Player as he rose back up the steps. Watching her stow the Aura—do not ask him how that worked—he searched her anxiously. He did not like leaving her unattended in this place; it set his nerves on edge. She had no visible injuries or changes, other than that she had finally lowered her bandana from around her mouth breathing a bit more easily.

After assuring himself that leaving her alone for a moment in an only partially secured place—unlike the barn, which he knew only had one way in and one way out—he moved ahead of her up the stairs. The floor was as dead as the other two. He moved through the floor slowly, only stopping to kill the Tiburce that would occasionally pop up, and to let his Player read the odd notes. "_'Third version: A sole insect, whose mandible spit meat'_." As they moved to the right half of the floor, the Batter paused. He could feel something, something like the earlier Elsen. He prepared himself.

Only a moment later did the headless Elsen stumble around a pile of boxes towards them. The Batter swiftly dispatched it, noting the pause his Player had before giving out orders. As the former Elsen melted away, he turned his attention to her. She was looking everywhere but at the Elsen. "…I can take care of those, if you wish." He offered her, concerned.

Such a fool! Of course she would be uncomfortable killing another creature, even one on the peak of corruption like that. She had most likely been rationalizing the Spectres in that they were not living. "Umm… Urg I should be fine doing it… but would you?" She finally answered him, looking away ashamedly. She had no reason to be ashamed; he did. He underestimated her purity and kindness. Of course she would be uncomfortable with hurting another being.

"It is no issue," he offered. "If we encounter more creatures like these—" He knew she understood what he was implying, as her shoulders hunched slightly at the reminder. "—on our mission, I will take care of them as well." She shifted her eyes back to him, embarrassment and relief in equal parts shining through.

"Thanks." He nodded at her, thinking of what he had just gotten her to promise. If they did have to fight Dedan at any point, she would no longer have control over the battle. He would be making the call to kill Dedan, while she watched. He much preferred that idea, over the thought of her interacting with Dedan, even to kill him. It would be the same for any human-ish creature they fought; her watching, not staining her hands or soul with their filth, and him acting on his duty as her guardian.

Up the stairs on the right was another note. "_'Fifth version: Five, like the fingers on a hand. Their lungs produce primordial smoke'_. Is this the creation story of this world?" His Player tilted her head, before shaking it. "We missed the fourth."

Back down they went and the Batter continued clearing the floor. On the far side of the third storey they found the fourth note. "_'Fourth version: They are four, each one attributed to an element. They protect their respective crystals…'_" His Player trailed off, setting the note down with a disquieted moue. The Batter moved up the stairs, keeping an eye on her trailing form.

The last storey of the floor held the final note on one side of a large room, and a fidgeting Elsen on the other. "_'Last version: There are but two, in a secret zone.'_" The Batter thought about that one; combined with the other notes, it painted an ominous picture. He did not like it.

He faced the Elsen, whose fidgeting intensified. "Uh… Uh…. The access to the secret lift is uh… forbidden…" It paused, scrunching up its face. "Did… did I say secret?" The Batter did not feel like watching the Elsen possibly go through a crisis. He could feel the sensation like a layer on his skin now, and he could tell what it was. _Hatred._

"I must pass."

"Ah? Uh… Really?" The Elsen looked shocked, but then shook its head. "No, uh… I think that's… uh… impossible… Unless… you uh… You have the code?" The Elsen looked at him expectantly. Fuck.

"We have it," his Player piped up from behind him, looking triumphant. "It's six-eight-one-four-five-two." The Batter blinked at her, as did the Elsen. How the hell did she know that?

"Ho-How?" The Elsen voiced the Batter's disbelieving thoughts. "You…You must not pass!" The Elsen looked panicked, fidgeting faster as its skin started to rub off on its hands. "I don't want to die!" The Elsen lunged over the counter at the Player, head rolling off with a sound similar to stepping on dry grass. The Batter smashed his bat into it, sending it back into the wall, where it slid to the floor and melted. The head lay there for a moment, before blankly stating "I'm going… to Alma…" It heaved a gasp. "…It will be nice." It melted into the floor.

They both stared at where it had been for a second. "Alma? Like the center of this zone? That's... ominous." The Batter nodded at his Players words; he had thought the same thing. This seemed off. They moved to the elevator, and as the doors slid open the Batter could feel the hatred roll out and across his skin, stinging like nettles. His Player did not seem to notice the sensation. _DEDAN_.

The elevator had only two buttons, and as they rose up the shaft the Batter could feel his skin tremble at the anger pouring from above. This was stronger than before at the barns; Dedan had to be blisteringly mad, as that was what the Batter's skin felt like it was doing. The doors opened, and his Player darted towards the yellow cube floating to the right. The Batter kept his eyes locked on the doorway in front of him. He could feel him.

He waited for his Player to finish before moving through the doors. The sight before him was not what he had been expecting. His Player gave a short hiccup of a gasp before silencing herself.

Dedan stood behind a large desk, cigar lit in his mouth as smoke billowed out from where his nostrils must be—that was conjecture on the Batter's part, seeing as the man had no visible nostrils—and curled around his blazing white eyes. He was surrounded by Spectres, and did not appear at all pleased with their presense.

"Miserable morons!" He snarled out, fangs clicking intimidatingly. "Piss off!" He swiped his clawed hand at the closest Spectre, ripping through its intangible body with ease. _Well damn, guess I really can't kill him for being the Spectres leader. Doesn't mean I cannot kill him for another reason, but that would have been convenient._

Dedan released a low growl, sending noticeable shivers down the Player's spine. "This is my zone! You ain't got the right to be here!" Another swing tore through another two of the Spectres, and he snapped around smartly to face the last two. "Get outta my sight, you phantoms of shit!" Another swing and they were gone. Dedan took a drag of his cigar, snorting out the smoke in anger. The rolling hatred was crawling over the Batter's skin.

"Hhh… Hhh…" He turned his head, eyes alighting on the Batter's tall form. "YOU!" He removed his cigar from his mouth, crushing it in his hand. The Player's eyes widened as she watched, mostly hidden in the doorway behind the Batter; he had to feel the pain from the coals, right? "It's _you_, you're the source of all my troubles! The ectoplasmic lord who's been eyeing my beloved zone!" The Batter started; odd, that was what he was going to accuse the General of being. "What do you want? Why've you decided to be a pain in the ass?" Dedan slammed a clawed hand down on the desk, cracking it. "I've dedicated my whole life to this place! You've got no right to ruin it with your damn ghosts! SHOVE OFF!" He snarled menacingly at the Batter, unnoticing of the Player in his rage. Had he not been so furious, he would have never missed her.

The Batter stepped further into the room, partially revealing the Player. Dedan did not notice, focused on the Batter. "You're mistaken. I'm not a phantom." The tone the Batter stated this in was matter of fact, clearing a bit of Dedan's anger. It was said as a fact. "I'm a purifier. I've come to purge the world of these ectoplasmic beings." The Player drew back around the corner of the doorway; she wanted little to no part of this whole thing.

"How dare you respond? And how dare you imagine that I'd just put up with this shit…" Dedan trailed off, eyes fixing beyond the Batter. He could feel it now, the sensation from the barn. It was in the next room, just beyond the doorway. He drew his eyes back to the Batter; as soon as this cretin was dealt with, he would investigate that _delicious _feeling. "Listen good. I'll make this simple. Get outta here and take your goddamn spectres with you, or I'm gonna kill you." He leaned back from the desk, sneering at the Batter. "I hope that's clear enough for ya."

The Player leaned out from the doorway; looks like Dedan wasn't going to listen to the Batter. As much as she didn't want to interfere here—because Dedan was so cool and the Batter had some classy retorts going on—it appeared she had to. "Um," she said, stepping into the room. "He's um, he's telling the truth." She stuttered to a stop as Dedan fixed her with his eyes, the glowing ocular organs piercing. She gave a small swallow; focus on those, not on his _really _muscular chest. Which was bare. "We are here to… eliminate the spectres, not bring more."

Dedan was barely listening, eyes locked on the source of the tantalizing feelings running down his skin. So pure, so interesting. He glanced at the male companion; what was the relation? Not family, for certain—though the man did remind him of someone, but who?—and, Dedan sneered again, most definitely not lovers. The Batter moved to block Dedan's view of his Player, eyes narrowed on the general. He had far too much interest in his Player for it to be safe.

Dedan turned what she said over in his mind, rage dropping even further. It made sense, and there was no doubt that a being like _her _certainly wasn't lying. After a long period of silence he turned his attention to the Batter.

"I'll believe that you ain't involved with the spectres. However, if I see ya again, you're dead." The statement was wholly directed towards the Batter, who tensed as Dedan's eyes moved to his Player. "As for you… Well, we'll see when you get to Alma." The Batter clenched his teeth, knowing what the man meant deep inside. It certainly wasn't good.

With that last parting remark, Dedan was enveloped in rings of light and teleported away, presumably to Alma. The Batter lowered his bat, and the duo stood in silence, thinking very different thoughts.

* * *

*I'm pretty sure that Tiburce is referring to its original form Tiburtius, from which the name Tiburce is derived. Tiburtius was a martyr who was convicted of being a Christian, confessed his faith and walked barefoot over hot coals with no injury. He was then accused of having used witchcraft to have accomplished this, and was beheaded.

So, did anyone catch the foreshadowing? It was one word, but it makes a world of difference in meaning. Also, I can now officially announce that we are a whole HOUR into the game. Whoo boy, this is going to be long.


	12. zone 12: RESPOND

Alright folks, just so you know I'm going to be glossing over much of the Alma stage. It's filled with back tracking and open areas, so it would get old real fast if I described each one.

**WARNING: Rated T for non-graphic battle sequences and awkward scenarios. Oh, and some minor language.**

* * *

The tram ride to Alma was short, the rain still splattering against the windows as it traveled over the plastic sea. The Batter stepped out first, tilting his hat to the rain, before letting his Player off the vehicle. They wasted no time in getting inside, as the rain had been steadily getting heavier as they approached Alma. The Batter was careful to shield his Player from as much of the rain as he could; he had been lax about this duty of his, and he would be remiss not to change that.

Inside the building was a single, purple room with a single Elsen standing in front of the door. It looked at them apologetically as they approached. "Uh…" it wheezed out, "I… I don't have the right to let anyone pass… Unless… Unless they answers some questions…" The Batter blinked at the Elsen. Odd way to prevent someone from entering a place, but really, what had he been expecting from an Elsen?

"Right then, the questions?" His Player was standing next to the Batter, wringing out her hair. The Elsen nodded, and got down to it.

"Number one: The second came from Jerusalem and…" The Batter tilted his head. What kind of question was that?

"…the third came from Orta." He turned sharply to look at his Player, only to find her looking at the posters on the wall. How did she know that?

"Number two: The Holy Trinity is made up of…" That one the Batter knew, but he stayed silent.

"…Roses." He was correct. Though generally any question about flowers could be answered with roses.

"Number three: Notre-Dame first appeared on the…" Was that not a building? What did it mean, first appeared on? Buildings do not just appear.

"…the Sixth." Guess his Player understood the question; she had not hesitated in her answer.

"Number four: How many threes are there in June?" What did that even mean?

"Um….shoot…. 22." His Player's answer did not sound very certain.

"Number five: Cyrille, Kevin and…" That was not even question, just a list of names.

"That's not a question, but Jonas." And yet, his Player still got it. So intelligent and wise, his darling Player.

"Alright, then the last question. If you turn March upside down, what two digit number can you read?" The Batter was more than baffled with this question. How could one turn an entire month upside down? A highly nonsensical question, in his opinion.

"87," the Player answered without pausing, a smile lighting up her face. "Is that all the questions then?"

The Elsen stared at her wide eyed. "That's… That's correct…correct…" The Elsen gave a rasping wheeze and lunged forward at the Player. The Batter smashed it back before it could reach her, the body melting outside the door. The head rolled slightly, gasping. "My… My nails are all dirty…" Then it too was gone. _Filth._

His Player knelt down, examining the soot covered clothes. "What on Earth could cause an entity to corrupt like this?" She reached out to touch the soiled cloth, but the Batter swiftly grabbed her arm, his skin barely even twitching. Oh, placing a restraining hand on a pure being; such filthy actions. But he could not allow her to dirty her flesh by touching those garbs, it was awful enough that she was continually afflicted by himself.

"I do not believe that would be wise," The Batter mumbled, releasing her arm. Would she forgive him for his impertinence? She should not, but she had shown herself to be kind and more caring than he deserved before.

The Player nodded, standing up and brushing off her legs. "Guess you're right." As she swiped the dust from her knees, the Batter moved out of the building to inspect the newly passable area. Plastic—wait, was that plastic?—splashed softly against the edges of the island, rain still plipping down, and an Elsen slowly making its way toward them. He moved behind his Player as she stepped out, hunching over her slightly to keep the rain off of her as they moved forward.

"Hey, stop that." The Batter froze, looking at his Player. "Look, this looks like it will be a big area; it would slow us down if we walked like that." Looking up at him, his Player smiled. The Batter felt warm. "I appreciate the thought though. Thank you." She thanked him? Oh, how noble and generous his Player was, to thank him for doing his duty. It pained him to let her get wet—what if she fell ill?—but his Player was right. It would take far too long to continue in such a manner. _And I need to kill Dedan soon._

The Elsen's heavy breathing was audible over the rain now. "Why is the plastic red here? The rain is still pink." She moved over to look at the discolored plastic as the Batter focused on the approaching Elsen. It was moving faster, looking concerned as it inspected him. The Batter moved to intercept it, leaving his Player behind him, still inspecting the plastic. He kept an eye on her, afraid she would fall it. Could she swim?

"You… You… uh…" Oh right, that. The Batter looked at the shivering Elsen, wet and nervous under his gaze. Pathetic as these things were, it might have some information on where to find Dedan.

"I'm here to see Dedan," he said, watching with amusement as the Elsen physically recoiled from him.

"De… Dedan…" It seemed to consider this for a moment, gathering what composure it had. Its watery eyes landed on the Player, and it relaxed, understanding flooding its face. "Yes… Yes of course…" The Batter tensed, his Player moving up next to him. The Elsen cleared its throat loudly, standing up slightly taller, but still slumping.

His Player leaned in to whisper to him, "That was NOT plastic." She sounded bemused by this as the Elsen began to speak.

"Hhh… You're here at the meat fountains—"

"_Meat Fountains? _That's a thing?" His Player sounded incredulous, and more than a little disgusted. The Batter tilted his head towards her, looking at her shocked face. Her world must be very different, he thought. What do they have instead of plastic to drink? What do they breathe instead of smoke? What did they consume other than meat? The Batter suddenly was concerned; would he be able to obtain any of what she used for sustenance in this corrupt world? She was too pure to consume what he did!

"—the center of the first zone. Here, meat flows freely, continually filling these immense metal pools you see before you. Our work consists of pouring this meat into bottles before the fountains overflow. The meat is then immediately delivered to all the other zones, from zone 1 on." As the Elsen continued it spiel, it was oblivious to the near comatose state the Player had fallen into.

"But why? Where does it come from?" The Batter hovered, fretting over her. "Why does it even exist?"

"As the first of four elements… It's an important element… Because without meat, people would have nothing to eat. They would die of starvation, one after another."

"Okay," The Player murmured, "that makes sense. But why is it a liquid? I have solid meat that we've found. Do they liquefy it on purpose?" She was baffled. The Elsen ignored her question, eyeing her with interest. The Batter shifted, drawing its attention back to him.

"Ma… Master Dedan has an office in the center of the fountains." Ah, now they were getting somewhere. "But… but nobody has ever found it." The Batter looked at it incredulously. How they hell did any of these creatures survive this long?

The Elsen tilted its head, thoughtful. "Generally… speaking… Master Dedan seems to only appear when necessary…" Probably for his own sanity, avoiding the Elsens. "Well, uh… there." Well what? None of that was helpful, you worthless piece of scum!

"… … Who are you, anyways?" It glanced at the Player again, who had brought herself back under composure. Poor Player, stuck in a filthy world; she had not mentally prepared for the depravity of this reality, it seemed. "It's not often that Ma… Master Dedan sends out a memo." What?

"I've come to liberate the world of malignance." The Batter watched the Elsen carefully. What was in this memo? From how the Elsen reacted, it mentioned his Player. He had to get ahold of it.

"Oh… Oh really?" It rubbed the back of its bald head. "Uh… well then… Can you liberate me?" The Batter stilled, and The Player snapped her head up. The Elsen lunged at The Batter, skin erupting in black liquid as it made its attack.

"Home Run!" The Player yelled this out as she dove to the side, and the Batter obliged. The former Elsen's body squished under the force of his bat, and was propelled into the meat pond. The head hissed, sitting on the edge of the land.

"Perhaps it will get better now," It gave a wheeze, eyes rolling to land on the Player. "now that you're here…" The Batter did not wait for it to melt, kicking it into the lake. His Player came to stand by him, looking at the fading ripples.

"He was corrupted too…" She trailed off, moving to continue further into the zone. "Why?" The Batter did not answer. It would do her no good to know that everything in this world was rotten. That nothing pure was left here. That the Elsens were not—

"Save point!" The Player rushed ahead slightly, messing with the floating yellow box. On the adjacent platform was a familiar, oddly dressed man. Who was not in the slightest bit wet.

"Hello Manly!" Zacharie's eyes, traced him up and down. _Why do I feel oddly uncomfortable?_ "In good shape? I see you are!" _I feel frightened, like this is outside my capabilities to deal with. _"…Perhaps you have some spare credits?"

"Indeed we do, Zacharie!" His Player bounced over, pouch jingling merrily. "And hello!" Zacharie gave a deep giggle, cocking his hips to the side.

"A pleasure to see you again, my dear." He tilted his head, and the Batter got the impression he was smiling at her. "Need anything in particular?" The Player grinned happily at the taller man.

"In fact I do. Would you happen to carry water bottles by any chance?" Wa…Water? What on Earth would she want that for? It was toxic!

"Ahh, can't drink plastic, right?" The Player nodded. "Well, luckily for you, I am an amazing, reality breaking NPC. So I do have water bottles." The Player cheered and the duo got down to haggling over the price. The Batter stood there, wondering. If she drank water, did that mean they had lakes, rivers, oceans filled with it? If she, a pure being could drink it, did that mean it was not toxic, but rather that he and everything else in this world was too corrupt to take it? If so, it brought in to perspective how far this world had fallen.

"Alright, my dear. Take care!" Zacharie waved as the duo moved back over to the yellow box, allowing the Player to save again before they moved on. Heading to the left, they found an Elsen standing by a lake of meat, with an odd sign behind it.

"Plea… Please let me work!" It shrieked out as it grabbed for them. The Batter did not hesitate to smash it. It gurgled, body melting and pouring into the meat lake. "Yet, I've never been ill…" The head followed, sloshing into the tainted pool. The Batter moved forward to inspect the symbol on the wall. It was the silhouette of a man. Why it was even there baffled him. Stepping back, a piece of the former Elsen's clothing crunched under his foot. He knelt down to inspect it as his Player did the same with the image. The Batter pulled the pants back. A stained piece of paper sat there.

"Pedalo recovery point. Call a pedalo?" The Player touched the man, and jumped. Sitting in the pool was a duck boat. "Ah! It's a duck!" As his Player examined the boat with glee, the Batter examined the paper.

_Memo to all Staff_

_In recent events it has come to my attention that you morons are not meeting standards. As such, if production does not increase, cuts will be made. Also, I have been informed that a person of __**considerable**__ interest to me will be visiting Alma. Make her feel welcomed and inform me when she arrives. When she does arrive—_

The rest of the memo was stained with the black goo that made up the Elsen's remains. The Batter snarled. What business did he have with the Player? She was his! Dedan had no right to even look at her, let alone take an interest in her! He would have to be dealt with swiftly.

"Batter, come on! We can use the boat to get to other areas," the Player called, waving at him. The Batter stood up, dropping the memo as he did. He had to focus; Dedan would be dealt with, but for now, he had to care for his Player. "Oh, _God!_ There are ghouls in the meat. They are living _in_ the meat." And take care of that.

[Timeskip]

The Batter had come to a very important conclusion. Alma was too damn big. After wandering around, flipping switches and battling aquatic ghouls, they had finally opened the door to the main building. And made their way back there. Again, too big.

The Batter hustled his Player inside out of the rain, and surveyed the room. A tingle scratched its way across his shoulders, eerie in its familiarity. _Dedan was here_. The Player looked around the room, her face scrunching up.

"Oh no. It's one of these, isn't it?" She sighed, slumping a little as she dripped plastic onto the floor. "I hate mazes." Going straight, they entered an identical room, and the Batter understood. This building was a maze; the odds of them finding Dedan in a reasonable amount of time were slim to none. The odds of finding anything at all were slim to none.

Continuing straight again, they entered another room. This one was not the same, only having two doors instead of four. And sitting in the center of the room, cleaning himself, was the Judge. Of course, in a maze, with near no hope of finding anything, they would still find this bastard.

His Player coughed lightly, and the Judge looked up, lowering his leg. "Ah! I wish you good day, omnipresent comrade…and toy." Excuse me? "You will soon be able to admire all the apples and ultramarine landscapes of this area." What did that even mean?

"Hello my felicitous feline friend," the Player replied. "Would you mind lending us a paw? I'm afraid I am no good with mazes." The Judge purred, flicking his tail.

"Of course. You seem bewildered by the unique architecture of this place. If that is the case, you should learn to concentrate." He gave the Player a toothy grin. "In order to not be misled whilst choosing the opportunities offered at each corner of the maze, you had better remain and ponder a little while longer before crossing one of these trap doors next time, young madam, young drunkard." This cat was getting on his last nerve.

"Thank you, Judge." She scratched him behind the ear before moving off through the other door. The Batter glared at the cat for a moment before moving on as well.

"Think nothing—Hack! Hack hack cough!" The two stopped and turned to look at the Judge. He was coughing quite harshly, and the Player took a step towards him. As she did, a mess of slimy hair rocketed out of his mouth, splatting onto the floor. All four of the Batter's eyes widened.

"Pardon me." The Judge gave another wheeze, sitting up. "Hairball."

_That was not natural._

* * *

And so divergence is upon us. Encountering Dedan next chapter is where things get interesting, but some major hints have already been dropped. Let me know what you think—and if anyone can guess what Elsens are not, I will include a POV from the Player on meeting Zacharie!

Also, has anyone else been getting an error message for docx files? I had to transfer this one to a doc file to get it to upload.


	13. zone 13: REBIRTH

Here it is folks. This chapter is the defining point of no return. Here's what you all voted for: Going OFF the Rails! (See what I did there?) I think you all will LOVE what I have planned.

ALSO, for the sake of combat, I have decided to change how I had it arranged earlier. The Player can provide support and advice on what to do, which the Batter will follow, but he is free to act on his own in battle. It's a tad difficult to have someone controlling someone else in text during a non-turn based battle system.

**Warning: Contains Dedan, so swearing. Also, graphic battle sequence. As such, Rated M. Reader discretion is advised.**

* * *

"Okay, so the music gets louder as we go toward the correct door." The Player put her hands on her hips, looking put out. "I really should have noticed that before. Sorry, Batter." The Batter shook his head. His kind Player, always taking his worthless self into consideration. She was more than he deserved. That said, the Batter could not hear any music. He could only feel the itch, growing stronger as they progressed. It drowned out the tingles that his Player's innate purity always sent down his skin.

After at least ten rooms, the duo stepped back out into the plastic rain. The Player went to the red box and began messing with it as the Batter examined the closed courtyard. There was a chest, which the Batter smacked lightly with his bat to open. A Joker card was inside. Coming over the Player picked it up to examine it.

"A Joker card, huh?" She hmm-ed quietly, before putting it away and pulling out a bottle. Taking a swig of water—the Batter held back his shiver of awe, that she was so pure as to drink _water_—she looked up at the building ahead of them. "I'm going to take a wild guess and say that this is Alma's Central Command building."

The Batter looked up at the impossibly tall building. It seemed a safe assumption. Entering the building, there was only a long hall, filled with stairs as it climbed up. At the top of the stairs was a tall doorway, and the Batter paused. He was on the other side; he could feel it. His Player looked at him quizzically, before moving to go around him.

"No, wait." The Batter held his arm in front of her. How conceited he was to order his perfect Player around, but it was for her own good. That filthy upstart was inside. If his Player went first, she could get hurt or worse, Dedan could try and take her from him. The slithering thing in his chest tightened. _That was unacceptable. Dedan would never replace him._ His Player thought about it, before nodding and moving back. So trusting, so accepting of his position as her guardian.

The Batter stepped into the office, his Player right behind him. Two meatfalls poured into pools behind the desk where Dedan paced, snarling and snapping. Papers lay scattered across the floor, the apparent cause of his ire. Dedan froze, back to the duo. He could feel her, her aura creeping across his skin like ants. He turned his head, looking out of the corner of his eye. The Batter stood possessively in front of her, as she peered out from behind him at Dedan. He fought a smile. Perfect.

Turning his body fully, he fixed his eyes on the interloper. "…You." The Batter shifted, readying his bat. "By the Queen's thousand faces!" He took notice of how the Batter flinched slightly. So, he had a history with the Queen, hmm? What a lovely excuse to get rid of the annoying obstacle.

Dedan leaned forward, huffing smoke out of his nose. "Are you crazy? Are you just completely retarded?! What part of _'I'm gonna kill you'_ didn't you understand?" The Player moved back slightly, into the doorway. Dedan's eyes fixed on her, holding her in place.

The Batter bristled, moving to block Dedan's view. He lifted his bat. "I'm here to eliminate you." Dedan looked at him, before bursting in to loud laughter. He knew why the Batter was here; it was plainly writ upon his face. Dedan was a threat to his position with the girl, and he was here to remove that threat. He was jealous.

How cute.

"You think you stand a chance against me? Me?!" Dedan chortled at the Batter, taking another drag from his cigar. "You're insane." He gestured around him, eyes glowing with mirth. "I'm the guardian of zone 1. It ain't nothing without me! What mental disorder got your blind faith to hide even the slightest bit of evidence from yourself?" The Player focused in on what Dedan had said. The Guardian?

"Wait," she spoke up, drawing both males attention. "What do you mean you are the guardian of zone 1?" Dedan leaned back, eyes focused on her through the smoke. She was so small, he thought, tilting his head as he examined her. So pure.

"I'm the lynchpin for this zone." He sighed out another smoke filled breath between his teeth. "Guardians keep a zone stable, by providing a central point of reality convergence. Without us…" He shrugged, leaving it to her imagination. The Player got the idea.

The Batter smirked. This was perfect. He could not purify the zone without killing Dedan; the zone would continue to exist in its current state with him here. It was the perfect excuse to kill him. "I'm the one who's going to purify the world," he said, his voice filled with barely contained glee. "And you're the pest that eats away at the purity of this land." He shifted stances, drawing his bat up to fight. "Prepare yourself."

The Player shifted uncomfortably. She liked Dedan, he was interesting…but the mission came first. If Dedan was the stabilizing point of this zone, they had to remove him to purify the area. She sighed, flipping down the visor. This was why you didn't get attached to enemy characters.

Dedan snarled and flipped his desk out of the way and into the meat pond. "You'll taste the pain, you sick spirit." He clenched his claws together and roared. "I'm gonna cut your face to remove this insufferable smile. He dove forward, under the Batter's swing and slashed his claws down his front. His head next to the Batter's, he whispered "And I'll take her from you". The Batter swung again, a wide swing to drive him back. Dedan gave a screeching laugh as he leapt back, hands coated in the Batter's inky black blood. The Batter snarled; he hated seeing his blood, so filled with taint that it was like soot and ink.

_Dedan_

_Royal guardian of zone 1._

_HP: ? / CP: ?_

_First Boss_

The Player grimly nodded at the information. She had thought so. Dedan looked like a powerhouse, so it had followed that he would be a boss. "Hit him for a HomeRun." The Batter swung viciously, striking Dedan in the side of the head. He let out a hiss, before snapping his fangs down on the bat, tearing chunks out of the wood. The Batter yanked his bat back, growling. "Drat. Batter, see if you can't get a status effect on him. Try the Saturated Chain!"

He swung his bat over his shoulder, and pulled the chain out, swinging wide. Dedan ducked, the toxic chain passing harmlessly overhead and made his own attack. His claws dug divots into the Batter's leg, who roared in pain before bringing the chain down on Dedan's head. It wrapped around tightly and the Batter pulled.

The Player tsked , stepping back slightly to give them more room. "No effect." Dedan clawed at the chain, ripping it off his head and out of the Batter's hands, tossing it behind him. Black blood dripped down from his head as he grinned. Blood just as tainted as the Batter's own.

"Come on, you can do better than that," he taunted, darting forward to rake his claws down the Batter's side. The Batter swung his bat, connecting with him solidly and forcing him to skid back a few feet. "Come on, I've seen Tiburce with harder swings, you pansy!" The Batter snarled, whipping Alpha off his wrist and tossing it at him. It wrapped around him, pinning his arms down in a Long Awaited Embrace. Dedan began struggling, snarling at the white band. "You think I can't fight still, you little shit?! I'll fuck you up!" He kicked out at the Batter, hitting him in the back of the knee and forcing him down. Dedan brought his leg down in a sweeping kick, like an Hour Hand, smacking into the Batter's face and sending him into the wall next to the Saturated Chain. He slid down, slumping slightly, dazed.

Dedan took those few seconds of distraction to free himself of Alpha, who flew back to the Batter to make passes at the military man. Dedan chortled at the limp man, moving forward to deal a final blow while he was down. "Crap," The Player said, fumbling in the menu. "Luck Ticket!" She crushed it in her hand and tossed it at the Batter. He stood up, shaking his head as he regained a bit of strength, chain in hand. The Player watched anxiously. They were getting their asses kicked.

Batter moved forward, smacking Dedan under the chin with his bat, sending him back. Alpha darted at him, slicing across his chest. Dedan swatted at Alpha, smacking it down onto the ground. The Batter swung the chain, wrapping it around Dedan's neck and pulling. Dedan snarled, grasping at the chain around his neck while Alpha resumed slicing his skin.

Dedan finally ripped the chain from around his neck, panting. Both Batter and Dedan were badly hurt, black blood pouring into pools at their feet, leading into the meat fountains, which were turning murky. After a long moment, Dedan began laughing.

"Heh heh. You little shit. Look what you have done." He gestured toward the Player, who was watching quietly. "She's kept you alive this long, but what is it worth? You can't kill me; I'm a guardian." He sneered. "Even if you could, what good would it do you? She's seen how vicious you are. You think she'll accept you?" The Batter growled, running forward and swinging. Dedan dodged, laughing. "You think she'll stick around?" The Batter smashed his bat into Dedan's throat.

_HP: 1/4000_

Dedan's eyes widened as he slid down to the floor. "What? Dammit, this can't be…!" He looked up at the Batter, who watched impassively as he hacked. "I…I…I…lost? Lost?" Batter raised his bat, eyes glinting red as he looked down at Dedan. "You can't fucking kill me! You can't kill a fucking guardian!" Dedan clutched at the Batter's pant leg in desperation, claws tearing new furrows through the fabric

The Batter smiled, and brought the bat down. "I say you're just afraid to die." He crushed Dedan's back, blood splattering everywhere. Dedan gave a stuttering gasp, black staining his fangs.

"hhh… hhh… hhh…" The Batter raised his bat again, black blood dripping down the marred wood and on to his shoulders. How sweet it felt. He gave a toothy grin, his back to his Player.

"You've been defeated, _Dedan_, guardian of the first zone. This land is now pure." He paused, tilting his head. "Now die." He smashed his bat down, Dedan's body bursting with light.

_HP: 0/4000_

The room began to glow red, obscuring everything from sight. The Batter spun, grabbing his Player and wrapping himself around her protectively. He lifted his head up, looking around the red space, his Player's head cradled into his chest.

"…" What was that sound? Squinting, the Batter could see something drawing closer. As it drew closer, he stiffened. It was the image of a red room, with a small child in it. _Hugo_. The tainted child coughed, not seeing the Batter or his precious cargo.

"That started badly…" the child murmured, fiddling with his blanket. The scene faded to black, the Batter clutching his Player to his chest. Sitting in the darkness, the Batter released his Player. What was Hugo doing here? He stayed crouched as his Player stood, looking at something in her hands.

"The Cancer-card… If I'm right, this will take us to the next zone." She looked around, noting the three doors, each marked with a respective number. _0, 1, 2._ A faint niggling at the back of her head had her looking at _1_. She moved toward it. "Let's head back to zone 1. I want to make sure that we succeeded." The Batter stood nodding. Now was not the time to be worrying about Hugo. He had to live up to his Player's standards, her work ethic.

He glanced down at himself, noting that his clothes had been repaired and he was no longer injured. How odd. He gave a wide smirk, fingering his tunic. Dedan was dead. No more dealing with him, no more threat to his position as protector of the Player. The victory tasted so very sweet.

He moved through the door after his Player, noting that zone 1 was now in black and white, like himself. A lack of all color—other than the boxes that floated around—it was all just pure. The Player stood, confused, listening to the banging in the distance. It sounded like a scream was tossed in once and a while, sending shivers down her spine. But that couldn't be right. All the Elsen's had been purified, moved elsewhere. Right?

Moving through the dead zone, they found a chest with an Inspiration, which was tucked away before moving on. The Player stopped, staring further down the tracks. Up ahead was a rotted being, shambling its way toward them. "Batter." He moved to attention at the worry in her tone. "What is that?"

He moved in front of her, thinking of what to tell her. He decided on the truth. Or rather, a bent version. "That is a Secretary. It is the remnants of the sin that steeped this area, made corporeal. They will fade after a bit, unable to sustain themselves without a new source." The Player nodded, and the Batter swung, crushing the mushy body of the Secretary with ease. They moved on. "Any sounds you hear will be a Secretary, attempting to trick you into allowing it in. Ignore them."

So the Player ignored the sounds of banging, the muffled voice yelling "I'm here! Please, someone, I'm here!" It wasn't real. She ignored the whispers, unable to hear them fully. The Batter could, though.

"You killed us you monster we trusted you it hurts too quiet I'm scared" it went on and on, becoming white noise in his ears. It was all lies, last attempts from sinful beings to drag his Player down. Wandering through the purified zone, the duo collected some items—a Monday, some pieces of Abaddon's meat, a Grand Finale—as they removed the Secretaries they encountered. After a long while, they had made it back to Dedan's office. There was nothing left in the zone, everything was gone. The whole area was barren.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

Except the office wasn't empty.

* * *

There we go, the break. Let me know what you guys thought of this chapter, and the battle sequence. Battles are hard to write, as I can see it in my head, but making it so you can sometimes doesn't work.

Also, no one guessed what the Elsen's weren't, but that is an open offer. I dropped some hints here, and in future chapters more hints will come. If at any point someone gets it…


	14. zone 14: RELIVE

And here it is. The Big Reveal. The one that you all were waiting for. You have no idea how badly I wanted to get this one out there.

**Warning: Rated M for swearing, allusions to drug use, semi-graphic nudity and battle sequences. Reader discretion is advised.**

* * *

"See sweetheart?" Dedan took a drag on his cigar, leaning back in his chair as he looked at them. "This is what happens when a zone is without a guardian. It fades, everything in it goes ta shit." He watched, amused, as the Batter drew his bat and swung. The bat smacked into his side, causing Dedan to growl at him.

He swiped irritatedly at the Batter, snarling. "Stupid fuck, stop that!" Pulling his coat to the side, he looked at the rapidly fading bruise. It was only seconds before it was gone. "Heh." He took another drag as the Batter backed away, standing in front of his Player. Smoke billowed out of his nose as reclined, grinning maliciously at the confused man.

"How are you still alive?" The Batter bristled, confused. This wasn't right. This wasn't how it was supposed to be.

"Like I said, you can't kill a guardian." Dedan crushed his cigar. "You destroyed my zone, leaving me stuck here in eternal misery." He stood up, stretching. "Fortunately for me, you came back." Dedan drew his claws across the top of his chair, uncaring of the gashes he rent in it. "You see, as my killers, you share a connection with my soul." He grinned, his fangs clicking ominously. "Which means that my fantastic self has latched on to you." He strode over, knocking his shoulder against the Batter, and leaned over the Player, eyes bright. "I'll be going where ever you go. Forever. Isn't that wonderful?"

The Batter couldn't breathe. This wasn't right. This wasn't how it was supposed to be. Dedan was supposed to be dead, no coming back. Why was he here? A tiny voice in the back of the Batter's head screamed an unheard question. _'Why was this time different?'_

Dedan straightened up, still grinning. "You see, as a guardian without a zone, I needed something to care take." He reached down, and patted the Player's head. Batter snarled, yanking him away from his Player and swinging for his head. Dedan ducked, chuckling condescendingly. "Give up, ya little shit. You can't hurt me permanently." He swiped at the Batter, catching his shoulder with his claws and ripping it open. His grin lessened as he watched the wound heal up. "Well, damn. Looks like I can't hurt you either."

The Player tilted her head, eyes wide as she looked up at him as he moved away from a stunned Batter. Dedan stood tall over her, looming with a large grin as he took her small frame in. "Looks like Dumb-fuck can't get rid of me." He leaned down, eyes locking with hers. The Player's breath caught in her throat. "You could though. You could hurt me so bad that I fade."

The Batter barely kept himself from staggering. No. He couldn't kill the parasite, the interloper. And he most certainly could not ask of his pure, just Player to soil her hands with his death. What could he do?

The Player stepped back, uneasy. He was too close to her for comfort. "Why is that? I have no more of a connection with you than the Batter did." Dedan chuckled, ruffling her hair easily, despite her stepping back.

"Ah, well that's easy. You both may have killed me, but you, sweetheart, felt remorse for it. You regretted killing me—and that gave me an opening to latch on to your soul." Dedan slipped behind her, picking her up and squeezing her with a grin. "So I'm a part of you, and only you. Don't worry though," Dedan dropped his chin on top of her head. "I can't hurt you, as you are my anchor to reality. Or rather, I won't hurt you."

This was wrong. This wasn't happening. The Batter snarled angrily, striding over and snatching his Player from Dedan. She was his, not this filthy parasite's! He held her to his chest as he strode out of the office, heading toward one of the red boxes. His Player had said that she could use them to bring them back to the nothingness. Dedan wouldn't be able to follow them there.

"Not gonna work, shithead. I'm _attached to her_, closer than you'll ever be. You ain't getting rid of me, so piss off." Batter ignored him, placing his Player down in front of the box. She got the message, moving to open the door. The Batter turned to face Dedan as she worked, the box beginning to stretch vertically.

"You are filth on her soul. Her purity keeps her from being tainted by you, but you are not worthy of being near her." Dedan chuckled, looking at the equally tall man. How cute. He was jealous, and he couldn't do anything about him being there.

"Neither are you." Dedan narrowed his eyes. "We are both scum compared to her purity, but at least I don't delude myself that I can atone for my sins." Batter growled, and turned away from Dedan. The Player opened the door, and held it, waiting for them. He hustled her through the door, following her closely. He slammed the door before Dedan could get through, smirking tirumpantly.

"Try again, dumb-ass," Dedan said from behind him, leaning on his Player. "I get too far away from her now, and I'll just find myself right back with her." The Player shrugged him off, eyeing him.

Batter growled, clenching his fists as Dedan laughed at him. A small hand on his arm startled him. "Hey, uh, Batter?" His Player's voice was unusually timid. "It looks like he is going to be with us for a while, if not till the end, so… um… don't let him get to you, okay? Give as good as you get." She gave him a small smile, before moving off toward zone 0. She had decided to make that "Home Base" so to speak, and she needed to rest.

"Aw, did the wittle Batter need a pep talk because he was grumpy? Fucking retard." Dedan sneered at him, moving to follow the Player. Batter ground his teeth, before giving in. He stuck his arm out, clotheslining the irritating man. Dedan smacked into the ground.

"Shut up, trash."

The Player walked toward the Judge's abode, ignoring the bickering from the two behind her. They were like children. Interesting though, she thought. She hadn't seen the Batter express this much emotion. Ever. Thinking on this, she almost missed it.

The Player stopped before the building, aware of the two behind her doing the same. That room that had held the hints… something was very wrong with it. She could feel it. The Batter stepped in front of her, Dedan moving to peer past her. He drew his bat, moving toward the door. Something was making his skin pull toward the door. A sin so strong that it yanked at him. Not even Dedan's sin of wrath* was enough to yank his false flesh in such a manner.

Stepping into the room, he saw a set of stairs leading down. "Those weren't there before," his Player's quiet voice had him tensing. Whatever was down there was a direct threat to her; he could feel it on his skin. Dedan huffed, moving in front of the Player.

"Hey sweetcheeks, mind staying behind us? Even Numb-nuts over here feels something is off about what's down there." The Batter ignored the taunt, moving down the stairs as his Player agreed to stay behind them.

The stairs were long, and at the bottom was a crooked hallway. The Batter felt his skin shift, pooling and pulling toward what was at the end of the hall. Moving down the hall slowly, he could feel his skin starting to split. The air felt tight as he stepped into the room.

Grains of sugar crunched under his boots as he stepped in, looking at the half-naked figure reclining on a mountain of the sickly sweet substance. Dedan moved more firmly in front of the Player. "Holy shit. It's Sucrose**." He tilted his head, white eyes focused on the indolent figure. "I thought she had faded, after that whole deal with…" He trailed off as Sucrose shifted, raising her head slightly to look at her visitors.

"…I'm ignoring…" She gave a floaty giggle. "Why everything's so frightening." Her head lolled as she chuckled in her sugar haze. "I'm never hungry, :-). Think of something beautiful really hard," she breathed out a breathy sigh. "and maybe you will see it tomorrow." The Batter lowered his bat; at the moment, the sugar-addled girl was clearly no threat.

"Who are you?" The girl just laughed lightly, dragging her hand through the sugar she lay on. It was Dedan who answered, lacking all of his usual venom.

"Her name is Sucrose. She was a merchant who sold between the zones but… No one has seen her in forever. Thought she had faded, what with her being burned in the zone 3 factory and all." He got quiet, looking at the girl. Scars from the fires were laced across her chest. "Guess not."

Through the whole time they were talking, Sucrose remained unaware, giggling and babbling on. "Like a beautiful day, for example." She slid down the mountain of sugar, sitting against the bottom. "With a huge ducky. A frightening one." The Batter shifted, his skin still writhing.

"What are you doing here?" Something about her was familiar, not in the way that his Player had been, but still familiar. She made his sins crawl, pulling with a magnetism like no other. It was wrong.

"Let's not lose—" Sucrose stood up, arms above her body. "—any time—" She looked like a puppet, the Batter realized, raising his bat swiftly. Something was very wrong with her."—to useless introductions." Her head raised, eyes glinting behind her long fringe. "Let's dance, my dear friend. :-)"

Sucrose lunged forward, small strings pulling from her fingers and grabbing things out of the sugar. Small little Elsen heads swung from her strings, wrapping around the Batter's bat and yanking. He held fast, keeping a firm grip on it.

"Fuck," Dedan muttered, moving forward and swiping his claws at her. HE may not like the Batter at all, but Sucrose was clearly out of her mind. She was likely to try and hurt the Player if she won. His claws passed through her like she was a cloud. "FUCK! I can't hit her!" He moved back, swiping his hand down angrily. His claws caught, snipping her strings from the Batter. "What the hell is this shit?"

The Batter took his opportunity, unwinding the Saturated chain from his back and smacking her with it. "Ah! Poison inflicted," his Player called, visor down. "Try and use Alpha to hold her still!" Batter complied, throwing Alpha off his wrist and at the sugar-addled girl. She laughed as it wrapped around her, pinning her arms down and preventing her from using her strings.

"Cheater~! That's no fun ;-)." She moved to kick the Batter, but faltered, stumbling as the poison took its toll. As she did, she passed right through Dedan. "Waaaht? Is someone there~? o.O" The Player held back a gasp; she couldn't see Dedan at all. She couldn't feel him there. Dedan moved back toward the Player as the Batter beat down on Sucrose.

"Ah piss. I forgot that's how this worked." At her inquisitive glance, he explained. "I can't interact with anyone that isn't tied to the same anchor as me, in some way or another. Can mess with stuff still, as I exist, but…" He dragged a hand down his face, before digging out a cigar and lighting it. "Damn if it ain't fucking irritating!"

Batter raised his bat, smashing down again and again into her head as she laughed. His skin slowly stopped crawling, as she grew closer and closer to fading. She had stopped struggling entirely, her laughter sounding a tad relieved. Why wasn't she fighting back anymore? He slowed, his bat still raised above her head as black blood dripped like tar from her split skin.

"I'm feeling…" she paused, breathing a short laugh, "way too cold…" She chuckled, looking up at him with foggy eyes. He could see a faint glint, smothered far in the misty drug haze she was in. It was thankful. "I didn't like that dance…my…dear…friend… :-(" Her eyes welled with tears, and madness. "I think…the huge, frightening ducky…has won this round…" At the edge of fading, her eyes cleared and brightened with comprehension. "Say goodbye to Zacharie for me." And then her body stilled, losing color swiftly until only white and grey remained. It was quiet for a moment, before the soft sffft of sugar could be heard, and her body was buried under the mountain.

"Zacharie…?" The Player mused, her visor going up as she pocketed the Grand Chocolatier. "This woman, Sucrose, knew him?" Neither Dedan nor the Batter had an answer, and so the trio moved out of Sucrose's tomb.

After taking a short rest—in which the Player did not sleep, though neither the Batter nor Dedan knew she was tired at all—they moved into the building to head for the door. Inside was Zacharie. He lacked his usual zeal, no bouncy responses or greetings. His eyes were shadowed as he looked down at the ground, hands clenching and unclenching rapidly. He was very clearly distraught. "…"

"Zacharie?" The Player ventured to speak with him, while the Batter hung back. Dedan merely puffed on his cigar, content to watch this play out. He recognized the merchant, having not previously known his name but rather his mask. He understood now. The poor bastard.

"I guess it's better like that," he finally replied, eyes down. The Player reached up, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"What's better, Zacharie? What's wrong?" Her voice was filled with concern for the eccentric merchant, having grown fond of him swiftly.

"Better…that she's dead. I've kept her alive for so long, given her sugar to numb the pain." He paused, raising his head to look at her. "Numbed everything else too." He fell silent, looking deep into the Player's eyes. She could see a multitude of emotions tumbling around in his head, each fighting to be seen. Relief, sadness, anger, regret, pity…the Player could hardly keep up. "Need anything in particular?" Zacharie asked, moving into his role as the merchant. The Player didn't let him, moving forward and grasping him.

He tensed. Why did she care? Why did she care everytime? He let the tears spill from his eyes, trailing down his face behind his mask. Why did it hurt every time? He grasped her back, sobbing into her shoulder as she hugged him.

Why couldn't he go numb, like _she _had?

* * *

In my head canon, Zacharie and Sucrose were not lovers. Sucrose's backstory will be revealed further in, in zone 3's chapters.

Ah, my God. I have been waiting for this since the decision was made. There is going to be so much wonderful banter between Dedan and the Batter. It's going to be glorious. Angst!Batter is going to be so much more manageable now.

Let me know if Dedan ever becomes OOC. I'm trying really hard to remain in his character, but it's hard to get his cadence sometimes. I rely on you guys to let me know if I'm doing a good job with him!

*I looked into the game, and according to the notes that I could find, the named characters align with the Seven Sins. Dedan Wrath, Japhet Pride, Enoch Gluttony, Zacharie Greed, The Queen Envy, Sucrose Lust, and Hugo Sloth. I don't know if it is true, but I liked the idea.

**Since the substance is called sugar, I am using her alternative name of Sucrose, just to prevent confusion. Also, I am preserving the way she talks, so yes the emoticons will stay there.

_NOTE to: Superanonymouscarrots_

_Don't doubt yourself. You're pretty close, actually. It does have to do with being Burnt, but is also tied in with what ELSENS AREN'T. Maybe in the next few chapters, you'll hit it on the money… Good luck! (I dropped a few big hints this chapter, just for you!)_


	15. zone 15: RETURN

Okay, so some minor confusion about timeline remembrance. Zacharie is the only one who CONCIOUSLY remembers the previous timelines. Batter gets echoes from the past, more or less feelings but he does NOT remember anything.

**Warning: Rated MA for Dedan, so be prepared for overt swearing. Oh, and ****extremely**** graphic torture and murder. You know, the usual. Reader discretion is advised.**

**SERIOUSLY THOUGH, this chapter gets intense. If you feel you might be disturbed by the contents, please read with discretion.**

* * *

The Batter plucked at his new Taiyou Tunic, musing as they walked out of the building. After Zacharie had composed himself, his Player had bought new gear for everyone—including the parasite—with extra pairs in case of damages. But that wasn't what was on the Batter's mind.

What was it like, to feel that sad? To have your insides rent with a sadness so potent that you could not hide it. He did not understand it. Perhaps he was too far gone to do so. He glanced at his Player, who was opening the door out of zone 0. Did she understand it? Had she ever felt such a pain as that?

"Hey, fucktard." Dedan smacked him in the shoulder. "Look lively. If she sees you looking like the asshat you are, she might become worried over your worthless self." Dedan's eyes glinted cruelly. "Or are you going to keep whining like a kicked puppy, bitch?" Batter snarled, lunging at Dedan.

As the two wrestled, trying their hardest to kill each other, the Player sighed. This was going to be her life until this quest was done, wasn't it? Suddenly, she felt like she had a good idea of what being a single mother felt like. Perhaps she could leave them here…? She opened the door, sneaking through it.

Before she was even all the way through the door, both her irritants were by her side, still bickering. Well, it was worth a shot. Ignoring the fighting, she moved through the nothingness to the door of zone 2, dragging the Batter and Dedan behind her. Opening the door, she dove through.

"Huh? Oh it's zone 2. Haven't been here in what feels like forever! Could never forget the pansy ass pink ground here, though! Gahahaha," Dedan laughed inspecting the area. Seriously, like the hell with the color scheme in this zone?

"Do not soil the Player with your filthy words, parasite." The Batter looked at Dedan contemptuously. The filth had no place here, and its words were a taint on his perfectly pure Player's soul.

"Parasite!? Who da fuck do you think you're talking to, asshole? Piss off!" The Player ignored them, messing around with the red box floating nearby and saving their progress. Oddly, Dedan did not show up as a party member on the menu or save. She wouldn't say anything about it, though. Batter would use it to taunt him, if either of them even understood.

The Batter turned his head from Dedan, and moved down the pink—he had to agree with the parasite, albeit reluctantly, because it was an odd choice of pink—path behind his Player. _His_ Player, not that scum of a parasite _DEDAN'S_. His Player stopped dead—oh, the idea sent sickening ripples down his spine. Best to not use that phrase again—in front of him, mouth agape at the tall buildings in front of her.

"Holy cow! I had no idea this world had the technology to make such tall buildings!" Ah, what a cute reaction. His Player was so pure, innocent of the world. That was why he had to take care of her. He cut his eyes over to Dedan, who was puffing on another cigar. And why Dedan had to go. "Hey, this sign says there's a library in the city!" Dedan chuckled, tossing his arms behind his head as he strode after her.

"Yeah, Japhet was always into knowledge and shit like that. Wanted to enlighten the Elsen and show them how to live." He snorted out a burst of smoke. "He gave up pretty fast, faster than I did." The Player turned to face the library in front of them.

"Japhet, huh…" The Batter narrowed his eyes at her. What was with that reaction? It was…odd, to say the least. Did she recognize the name? He pondered this as they slipped into the building. Inside was a cool blue, with two doors on either side of two staircases, which were framing a desk. The Elsen manning the desk was talking to another, which was motioning quite enthusiastically. For an Elsen anyway.

"Yes," it wheezed emphatically, "You shouldn't lend any more books to that man." It leaned in conspiratorially. "He tears out the pages. It's almost dangerous!" It stood back up, brushing its tie off slightly. "Yes. I'm going back upstairs." It staggered its way up the stairs, oblivious to the trio watching it.

"Well, that was fucking weird." Dedan snuffed his cigar out and put it in his pocket. "The hell did it mean by 'almost' dangerous? Shit like that doesn't matter!" Despite the foul language, the Batter found himself agreeing. That whole interaction seemed off, stilted almost.

"Hmm," the Player said, thinking. She turned her head, looking at an Elsen that was murmuring to itself. It rocked back and forth slightly, eyes fixed straight ahead as it repeated its mantra under its breath.

"I'm doing nothing wrong… I'm just looking at the wall…" She gave another hmm. There was something _definitely_ wrong with area. She moved next to the Elsen, waving a hand before its face. It didn't even blink. Dedan tilted his head, inspecting the Elsen.

While she did this, the Batter had moved to the desk to speak with the Elsen there. While he hated talking to the worthless things, it might provide information on where to find Japhet, this zone's guardian. It would speed along their mission in purifying the zone if it did, but the Batter kept his expectation's low.

"Hello. Welcome to the library." It shifted sheepishly, and the Batter held back a sigh. Not even two sentences in and already something was wrong. "Uh… I should point out that the upper floors are inaccessible because of the spectres." The Batter furrowed his brow; that was odd.

"There are specters in this building?" The Elsen shivered, looking terrified. Or the Batter assumed. It really was hard to tell sometimes. It could just be cold, for all he knew.

"Uhh… Y… Yes…" It shrunk in on itself, as if afraid to talk to him. It really should be, but the Batter kept still. His perfect Player was in the room, and while _she tasted so good_, he had to fight the urge. He would not soil her with his filth again, unless he had no other option available. "Why do you ask?"

"I will eliminate them." The Elsen blanched, recoiling forcefully from the Batter. It knocked into the shelves behind it, books hitting the floor. It swiftly crouched down and began picking them up, avoiding eye contact.

"El… eliminate the spectres? But… uh… uh…" Dedan wandered up, and knocked a book off the counter. The Elsen picked it up, unaware of his presence. "You know, uh, you…" Dedan knocked the book off again, the Elsen bending down to grab it. "you could get hurt…and uh… there's nothing for you up there." The Elsen put the book down on the counter again, watching it. "Just walls, shelves, stairs—" Dedan knocked the book down again, smirkinging as the Elsen jumped. "—and an old cat." The Elsen finished nervously, pressed into the corner away from the book. The Batter tilted his head.

"A cat?" Was it that mangy feline the Judge? Could be, considering he had the most irritating habit of popping up where ever the Player was. Worth investigating, at the very least. "I'll go up and purify the upper floors." The Elsen stuttered, torn between watching the book sitting on the floor and the Batter.

"Ah… Um… good…" It eyed the book cautiously, body shaking lightly. "…Okay. Don't be too loud, then." Having decided the book wasn't going to move again, the Elsen looked at the Batter fully. "And the fourth floor is not really accessible… People have torn pages out of the books." A light gasp from beside the Batter had the Elsen shrinking back.

"Who would do such a thing?" The Player stood there, face aghast at the thought of tearing apart a book. The Elsen stood a tad bit straighter, nodding in agreement.

"It is such a ghastly thing to do," It agreed. "So I don't want to go up there. It could be dangerous." The Player raised an eyebrow in confusion, as Dedan groaned. He kicked the book on the floor, hearing the Elsen squeak in terror. That made him feel a bit better.

"Holy shit, what a fucking pansy." The Batter was inclined to agree, as the trio moved to head out the door to the left. An Elsen stood by a book shelf in the narrow hallway, looking confused. It sighed as they approached.

"This… is a large building." Dedan just looked at it blankly, while the Batter inspected the book shelf next to it. It was fake, with all the books glued into place. The absolute hell was with this place? The Player nodded at the Elsen, who looked very pleased—maybe—to have been acknowledged. They moved on.

They stepped out the door to the left, and moved away from the library. The Player turned to look at it, comprehension filling her face. "Oh! There are symbols on the wall of each side, so you know where you are in reference to the building! Useful." That meant it was done by this zone's guardian. Elsen certainly couldn't have managed.

"Yeah," Dedan puffed, breathing out smoke from his relit cigar. "Japhet tried to make it easy for the Elsen to find their way around. Don't know if it worked; things are fucking morons." The Player gave a wry smile, moving down the path away from the library. The Batter cut a swift glare at Dedan, not amused by his language.

The path ended abruptly at the plastic oceans, with several Elsen loafing around. The Player moved to talk with one that was standing off to the side, slightly straighter than the others in the area. "I have no fear." Odd statement to start a conversation with, the Batter mused. Then again, Elsen… "I know how to stop being scared. I am not afraid." The Batter narrowed his eyes slightly. Why did it keep saying that? "Do you want to know how?" It didn't wait for a response, making the Batter bristle. What an impertinent creature it was. "Come a little closer, and I'll tell you… if you're not afraid." Dedan snorted, as the Batter shuffled slightly. This Elsen…

The Player complied, and the Elsen leaned in. The Batter tensed, reaching for his bat. If it made one wrong move, he would crush it. "This page has enlightened me. I'm not afraid now." The Elsen tilted its head. "Do you want to be free from fear? Give me 100 credits, and I'll give you the page." The Player didn't even hesitate, making the Batter sigh and Dedan chuckle. His Player was too innocent; Batter would just have to smash the swindler when she wasn't here.

She moved back toward them, holding the page. "That was lucky!" They both looked at her blankly. "No, really. See, the books in the library were missing pages, or so the Desk Elsen said and that was why no one could reach the fourth floor. This page was clearly ripped from a book, so it is probably one of those pages!" She held it up for them to see. "If we can find all the pages, we may be able to gain access to the fourth floor!" The Batter understood perfectly well, but that didn't mean that he was fine with his Player being swindled into paying for it.

"Huh, well ain't that odd?" Dedan's voice dragged him out of his slightly murderous thoughts. The parasite was standing at the edge of the metal ground, peering out across the plastic. The Elsen around him had shrunk away. "The path to the amusement park is missing." He stretched lightly, noticing the Player's eyes on him. He flexed slightly, amused at her squeak. "Guess we'll have to come back later."

The Player nodded firmly, moving away from Dedan at a fast pace. She wasn't embarrassed. No not at all. Just like how the Batter was not attempting to drown Dedan behind her. Not at all real. Moving around the building, the Player spotted a large doorway with SHOP on top. Looking back, she could still see the two scuffling—Dedan had gotten the upper hand, but the Batter was bashing his face in. Surely it wouldn't hurt for her to go in without them. After all, it was just a shop.

Moving up the stairs, a worried wheezing stopped her. "Uh miss…wait…" She turned to look at the Elsen sitting on the stairs. "The mall is full of spectres. It's terribly frightening." Well, there went that plan. She wasn't equipped with any weapons, being a non-combat entity. "At least the lobby area is safe, after they closed the rest of the mall off." Oh. That worked.

"Thank you for letting me know. I'll be very careful." Moving past the Elsen and into the building, the Player was surprised at how cold it was inside. It was the first time in this world she had felt a change of temperature. The building was a cool blue, with a yellow save point floating off to the right, next to the hall. Across the way from the door was a familiar form.

"Zacharie!" She darted up to the masked man, who gave a warm chuckle at seeing her. He popped out his hip, in a much better mood than when she had last seen him.

"Buenos dias, dear Player. Where's a better place to shop than a shopping mall?" She laughed along with him, pleased to see her friend in a better mood. Being sad didn't suit the flamboyant merchant.

As the duo got down to business, another pair were realizing something very important was missing. The Batter released Dedan's throat as he looked around, ignoring the gasping creature. Where was his Player? He scrambled up, clutching his bat firmly. Where was She? All four of his eyes were wide open now, red spilling out as he whipped his head around, searching for her. It was dangerous out there, she had no weapons, no way to defend herself. Not that she even would; his Player was far too trusting! She was naïve and kind, easily taken advantage of in this tainted world.

"Fuck. Where did she go?" The Batter spun to look at the parasite. He was still here, so she couldn't have gotten far. He ignored how Dedan stilled, looking at his eyes. "What the hell is wrong with your eyes?" The Batter growled, moving back toward the library. Spreading his senses, he could feel her faintly to the North. Judging by Dedan's increased movement, he had done the same.

Tracking the feeling of her purity searing his skin, the Batter stopped in front of a large building that read SHOP. An Elsen sat out front. Stomping up to the pitiful thing, he grasped it by its necktie. "Did someone go past here?" The Elsen nodded rapidly, face sickly pale.

"Y… yes… I warned her…a…about the spectres in the mall. B…But she went in to the lobby…" There were spectres in the mall. His Player was in the mall. He was not with his Player. "It's… it's safe there… no spectres in the lobby…" The Elsen gave a frightened wheeze, and the Batter saw red. How dare it. How dare this piece of _filth_ let his defenseless Player enter an infested place. How disgusting of a failure it was.

He just couldn't let it continue to exist. _But it needed to suffer._

Hunching over, the Batter felt his body crack as he dropped the Elsen. His jaw split as his face elongated, teeth sharpening to razor points. His tongue extended, darting out to swipe at his gashed face. His leathery skin ripped his mask of humanity like an over-ripe fruit as he grew, bones snapping and stretching. Dragging his claws down his body, Batter clawed at the lies he used to hide himself from others. Slamming his tail down, he gave a roar as he body stopped its shifting. The Elsen trembled before him, lying on the cracked stairs, frozen in fear.

Snatching the Elsen up, he held it up to his eye. It shook as he growled, claws tearing its shirt. "P...Please!" _Filth. Us them it all filth._ Snarling, the Batter smashed the Elsen down, its spine snapping on the edges of the stairs with a sharp crack, legs going limp. His other clawed hand shoved itself into its stomach, ripping into it like a water balloon, blood leaking out around his claws. The Elsen retched, grasping frantically at his arm. Grinning, the Batter twisted his claws around and around inside it, listening to it scream. _Weak. Worthless._ Chuckling heartlessly, he yanked his hand up, tearing out its intestines as it bawled in agony. Raising it to his muzzle, the Batter slurped them down like noodles, blood splattering across his face. He laughed, pupils blown wide. He felt _amazing! So good so tasty. Rip it tear it. Make it __**suffer!**_

The sobbing of the Elsen got louder, and the Batter smirked down at the bloodied Elsen. "_Shut up._" Slithering his tail up around the Elsen's throat, he shoved the end into its mouth, muffling its whimpers. Gently trailing his claws down its side, Batter watched his claws leave gashes down its flimsy flesh. _Rip tear riptear._ He chuckled, before angling his claws and pushing. Meticulously slicing strips of skin off the unfortunate Elsen, the Batter grinned maliciously, meeting the Elsen's panicked eyes. Each strip he peeled off, the Batter swiftly ate, never breaking eye contact with the pathetic creature. The worthless thing's screams intensified as its eyes rolled in panic and agony. It was starting to get on his nerves.

Flexing his tail, the Batter snapped the Elsen's jaw like a twig. A scowl worked its way across the Batter's muzzle; it was still screaming. Pulling his tail out of the creature's disfigured mouth, he reached in and tore out its tongue. Still it screamed. Exasperated, the Batter grasped its jaw firmly, claws puncturing through the bottom to wrap all the way through. "_I said shut up._" He yanked, the Elsen's jaw coming off easily in his claws. The Batter giggled, tossing it up and snapping it out of the air, his jaws crushing it like tin.

The Elsen gurgled faintly, hands clutching at the Batter's shirt as he laughed at the worthless mess of flesh and blood. Its eyes were streaming with tears, its dull black depths filled with terror. _Aw, is the poor thing scared? Worthlessfilthytrash!_ Reaching down, the Batter drove his claws into the Elsen's eyes, plucking them out to toss to the side. "_You didn't need those, right?_" Only wet sobbing met the Batter's mocking. He laughed, tossing his head back. It was just so _delicious_.

Seizing the useless creature by the neck, he held it up above his head. It struggled weakly, hands grasping at his own as it gasped wetly, blood bubbling up to smatter down on him. He smashed it down onto the steps again and again as it struggled to breathe, ribs snapping with the force. "_Pathetic!_" The Batter snarled as he pinned the limp Elsen to the ground, tail whipping from side to side furiously as he took in its barely breathing form. Sinking his claws into its arms like hooks, the Batter pulled. It found the energy to let another gurgling scream as its arms were yanked off with a sound like the ripping of wet cardboard. Dropping the Elsen, Batter shoved the arms into his mouth greedily, crunching them with ease. Blood sprayed out as he mashed them, his eyes locked on the Elsen's mutilated body. _So good so tasty want more more moremoremoremoremoremore_

Tearing and pulling and crunching until nothing of the body was left, the Batter laughed, licking his muzzle as he flexed his blood soaked claws. _It feels so goodsogoodsovery very good!_ Nothing quite satisfied like eating something _alive_. Taking a step down the stairs, something squished under his foot unpleasantly. Looking down, the Batter grimaced. He had stepped on one of the filth's eyes. _What a waste._

The Batter scraped the gelatinous mess off his foot. _Worthless filth. It was your own fault. You dared. How dare you. How dare you even __**exist**__. All your fault._

_But we are the ones who didn't watch her. We are responsible for anything that happens to our redemption._ The Batter shrunk down, donning his skin of lies. Stripping off his blood soaked clothes, he used his tunic to wipe up most of the blood drenching the stairs. His pants got the rest. Wearing new clothes, the Batter casually tossed the bloodied rags he had been wearing into an open window. Walking down the stairs, he picked up his bat carelessly. His smooth movements belied the thrashing monster just below the surface of his façade.

Dedan stood at the bottom of the steps, watching him. His cigar was lying on the ground, smoldering. His white eyes met the Batter's red, and Dedan's ever present grin grew even larger, spreading impossibly wide. "Well, you little _**Monster**_. And here I thought you were a Goody-goody… Does she know?" The Batter's silence was enough of an answer. "Oh this is rich!" Dedan cackled. "Oh don't get your panties in a bunch, asshole. I won't tell 'er." He looked at Batter with pure, vicious mirth. "I want to see this whole thing blow up in your face. When she finds out what you are, what you do… _**AHAHAHAHAHA!**_ I can't wait!"

The Batter turned, and walked up the stairs with his bat shouldered. _Doesn't matter if he tells, does it? Just give us an excuse. She tastes so good so very very good._ Stepping into the building, the Batter swung his head around. _Whereisshesheisn'there!_ The Batter stilled as his eyes alit on his Player across the room, haggling with Zacharie. _Alright, she's alright allgoodallsafe. She'sokayalrightsafe._ The sight of his pure Player soothed the writhing beneath his false skin, the blood lust boiling just beneath the surface. She was okay. He would never let her go; he would keep her by his side _right there always close alwaysalwaysalways._ He closed one set of his eyes, relaxing slightly. Dedan's laughter became louder as he stepped into the room, catching the Player's attention. Turning to look at them, she smiled. She did not know what he had done; she would never know what he had done. _nevernevernevernever NEVER_

"Ah, you guys made it." Looking at the former guardian crowing loudly, she wrinkled her nose. "What's with him?" The Batter shrugged, putting his bat away. She didn't need to know. She could never know. Looking at Zacharie over his Player's head, he stiffened. The dark, accusing look in his eyes spoke volumes.

_I know what you just did._

But Zacharie never said a word, just finished up the transaction with the Player, and waved merrily as she stepped out. His eyes did not leave the Batter, tracking him from behind his mask.

As they stood outside the building, the Player talking about what she got, Batter tilted his head up to look at the sky. How did he know? "Hey, where did Dedan go?" Looking around, the Batter did not see the parasite. Why did she care about him, anyway? He wasn't worth her time. _But neither are you. You could have let her get hurt._ Shut up.

"Don't wander off again." His voice was quiet, and he felt shame at ordering his better. He had no right. She looked at him, considering his words. The Player smiled, and nodded at him, much to the Batter's relief. He could not bear it if he failed her, if she was hurt while he was not there. He stood in silence, basking in her existence.

Dedan walked out of the building a moment or two later, hands in his coat pockets as he strolled out. "Sorry about that, sweetcheeks. Ready to keep going?" The Player nodded, confused, but she didn't ask. As they walked away from the building, the Batter caught Dedan looking back with an odd look his eyes.

As he stepped off the final step, something bumped against the Batter's boot. The Batter fell back, and looked down. By his right foot was the other eye. Reaching down, he picked it up and inspected the black orb. Face blank, he tossed it up in to the air and ate it whole. His tongue swiped out to lick his lips.

_Sosweet._

* * *

So, how are you all today? No? Okay, so yeah that whole scene up there. Right.

The Batter's panicking. Even though he can still feel her, he's freaking out over the possibility that he could lose her and fail his mission. He needed someone to blame and work out his hatred on, so the Elsen was picked. He was quite literally having a mental breakdown, and I hope that came through.

That said, this was also a longer chapter to make up for the fact that nothing really happens in zone 2 for a bit still.

Also, to make up for having to go really dark in this chapter, here is an OMAKE! Enjoy!

* * *

**JUDGE (Two Encounters and Innumerous Conclusions)**

_What will you do, Judge, when confronted with an angel and the Devil?_

He didn't know what to make of the interloper and her picturesque jumping jack.

The first meeting was quite enjoyable. The patricianly puppeteer was quite relaxed, smiling at him as he spoke, as if she had not a care in the world. The pernicious puppet was puffed out, inching his way in front of his Player. The Judge wanted to scoff; like that minuscule movement would impede his advance should he so choose. To mock the fool, the Judge twined himself through the Player's legs, purring as she pet him gently. Out of the corner of his eye he watched the Batter twitch, restraining himself and the Judge smirked when the man snapped at him.

When the Batter informed him of the portentous purpose set to him and her, the Judge had to think. What would a Batter be doing with such a momentous mission? It tickled his whiskers in just the wrong way. Something was very off about the interlocutor, as if his skin was not his skin, but rather a fictitious facsimile of a face. However, the purity of purpose in the puppeteer cleared his doubts, and he offered his services to the puzzling pair. He even grew fond of the Player herself, as she assisted him in getting his lunch. How delightfully generous, he found her! Such a rarity in these times.

The second meeting was what made him truly wonder. In his investigation of the perplexingly peculiar ring, he stumbled across the duo again. The Player was much too pale, looking as if the very smoke around her was pressing in far too tightly. The Batter focused on himself with unwavering precision, and the Judge could feel the intent to crush his cuddly form pour off the tall man. It set his fur on point, not that he would be so undignified as to let that show. Never. It worried him though; what prevented the cruel creature beneath that camouflage of civility from ripping off its cloak? The vulnerably venerable venturer had no defenses of her own. If the toxins seeped through the concealment like a pernicious predator, what could she do? But the Judge hid his concerns in quips and quotes.

When the Add-on—Alpha, as the Player asserted—latched on to the spiritually bereft Batter, the Judge knew. He watched the false flesh of the prophet puppet ripple, barely clinging to the falsehood of humanity. While the Player may be pure in her intent, something very vicious was veiled in the Batter. He made his decision; while he may normally not venture beyond his anatomically amiable abode, he had to investigate. He had to watch. He had to understand what was so terribly and truly toxicant about that athletic anybody. He had to try to contain the beast within the Batter.

He felt it in his whiskers.

* * *

I always felt it was odd that the Judge clearly stays in zone 0 until you arrive, then he starts wandering. Probably going to be another Judge OMAKE soon, and you all know why. That one will most certainly be FULLY 1st person. That said, are there any requests? I would love to hear what scenes you guys would want covered, and from who's POV.


	16. zone 16: REBATO

So for the most part I will be including the text from the books into this chapter, as it lets the story flow better and I thought that maybe you all would like to know what the books said, seeing as it was quite difficult to read them in the game. Sorry if you find it tedious, you can for the most part skim them. However, if there is regular text surrounding it, it would be wise to read it. Personally, I found what the books said to be interesting, but hey. Maybe it's just me.

Sections that are marked like this **[WORD] **are words I put in to make a section grammatically correct, as I think the translation missed a few words. It doesn't change the meaning at all, just letting you all know that I am doing that.

This all said, this is going to be a longer chapter, if only to get a good chunk of the filler out of the way.

**Warning: Rated M for Dedan and supremely awkward combat situations. Actually, just the one.**

* * *

After checking out the surrounding area—they discovered they needed ties, of all things, to gain entrance to the Residential Area—the group had moved back into the library. As the first building in the zone, the Player felt that it was best to start there.

The second floor of the library was deserted, with a pair of Elsen occupying the space. Dedan glanced at the shelves as the Player went to speak with one. "Huh. These shelves are fake." His voice was flat as he looked at more shelves. "These too…" He was quiet for a moment, head turning to survey the area. "Most of these shelves are fake… Well, the fuck is the point of this place?"

The Batter had to agree—he found himself doing that more and more with Dedan, it was pissing him off. What use was a library filled with nothing? Going around, the Batter easily spotted the real books, if only by the layer of dust on them. Only eight books out of this entire floor were actually books. How odd.

"Um, excuse me?" The Player tentatively got the Elsen by the bookshelf's attention. Despite her gentle tone, it still jumped. "Why are all the books here fakes?" The Elsen took a few deep, wheezing breaths to calm itself slightly, before responding in a breathy voice.

"I… It's because books are fragile…" It wheezed quietly, seeming to make an effort to keep its voice down. "I prefer the fake books. You don't need to worry about damaging them." It carefully placed its hand against the fake books glued into the bookshelf, face lightening up slightly. The Player moved on to the other Elsen, who had been watching the group curiously.

The Batter stayed by the Elsen, eyes locked on a book sitting on the shelf next to him. _**Explanations**_. Glancing at his Player quickly, he yanked the book out and flipped to the first page.

_Index_

_-Introduction_

_-The creation of the Modern World_

_-The Guardians_

_-The Queen and her son_

_-The Four Zones_

_-Zone 0_

_-The Toad King and the Man_

_-Annex_

_-Glossary_

_-Author's note_

His hands tightened on the book. No. Don't think about it. Flipping the pages, he found the rest of the book blank. He quietly put the book back, glad that the rest of the pages were missing. His chest hurt, thinking about what could have been in that book. Shaking himself free of the past, the Batter turned and moved to stand with his Player. He ignored the odd look Dedan gave him as his Player turned from her muffled conversation with the Elsen.

"Okay, so there are only a few real books on this floor. That means that there must be something important about them." At the quizzical look the Batter threw her, she blushed. "Uh, well… that's how these things work. I'm sure there is a puzzle involved somehow." The Batter nodded; he remembered how easily his Player had conquered the previous puzzles. Her infinite wisdom was clearly right, and he would listen to her noble thoughts on the matter.

"Um… Don't turn the pages… It makes too much noise… O…Okay?" The Elsen's stuttering request was ridiculous. Before the Player could comment on the notion, it continued. "Not…that it really matters." It looked down, seemingly ashamed. The Player gave it a gentle smile.

"We'll need to turn the pages to get the information, but we will try our hardest to be very quiet for you, alright?" The Elsen gave a small nod, looking like it was soothed by the Player's consideration.

"Hey, sweetheart. Don't pander to these things; they aren't worth it." Dedan chuffed lightly, as the Player gave him an indignant look. She was certainly not _pandering_, just being polite. Ignoring him, she moved to inspect the books, starting that the left hand side of the room, closest to the stairs they came up.

Lifting the first book off the shelf, she realized the title was scratched out. Flipping around the book, she realized most of the book was empty. Only two pages had anything on them. Inside were images of flowers, an Orchis taking up an entire page. "Okay," she muttered, "a flower." She took note of the page numbers, seeing as every other page in the book was blank. She put it back and moved to the next one, the Batter close behind. Dedan stayed looking at the book for a moment longer, eyes narrowed.

The next book was called _**Tales and Legends**_, and the Player eagerly flipped it open. She had a fondness for a good story.

_The Toad King_

_A long time ago, __**[there]**__ lived an evil king. His face was so repulsive that he was nicknamed the Toad King. One day, a masked man met the King during an audience. He said the following words to him: "Greeting__**[s]**__ wretched monarch, leave this land at once or perish at the tip of my blade."_

_The King replied: "I am the king and you are my subjects. You are not to go against my will." And so the Masked Man slew the King with his mighty sword._

_The End._

The Batter stiffened. He hated this story. Curious as to what his Player thought, he looked at her face, to see her eyes furrowed in a frown. He did not like it when she did that; he liked it better when she smiled.

"Why was he evil?" The Batter blinked at her, as she looked up at him. What did she mean? "It doesn't say _why_ he was evil, just that he was ugly. Was he considered evil because people thought he was ugly?" The Batter stayed silent, watching her. "I don't think that's very fair." How very kind of his Player, how pure and just. No one else had ever bothered to ask. She put the book back after noting the page numbers, and moved across the room.

The next book was titled _**Written by E.S.**_. "Odd name," the Player commented as she cracked the book open. Her face immediately fell, causing the Batter to crowd in. What was wrong? Dedan leaned over to look as well.

_Prenez garde, Madame, vous commencez ò grossir ! ... et grossir c'est vieillir ! ... En suivant la methode Dalcroze, qui a introduit le solfege, vous conserverez toute votre sveltesse._

_Trois sonates de - determinent un amgaigrissement progressif tres sensible et six - fugues de - ont sur les cellules adipeuses une action foudroyante. On peut encore accelerer les effets du traitement en l'executant sur_

"Drat, I can only get bits and pieces of this. I don't speak French that well." The Player sighed, as the Batter blinked slowly. How wonderful his Player, to even understand any of it. He spoke not a word of French, preferring Common and Clear* speech. How learned, his Player! After a few moments, the Player gave up trying to understand and noted the page numbers. Putting the book back, she turned to move on.

"_Take care, madam, you are starting to get fat!...and to get fat is to get old!_" She turned to Dedan, who had picked up the book and was reading it effortlessly. "_…By following the Dalcroze** method, which introduced solfege, you will keep all your slenderness._"

"_Three sonatas of-determines a very sensible and progressive weight loss—fugues of - have an overwhelming action on fat cells. You can still accelerate the effects of treatment by executing them on—_" Dedan closed the book, as the next pages were blank. The library was quiet as the Player gaped at him.

"You speak French?" Her voice was as incredulous as the Batter felt. How did this military muscle head know French? A parasite, a blight on his Player, know how to read, let alone read in another language?

"Yeah, I'm fluent. Italian too." Dedan looked at her shocked face. "What's so surprising about that, huh?" She composed herself, hiding an embarrassed blush. She was being rude.

"Sorry, it's just that it didn't seem like something you would know. You look more like a fighter than a scholar." Dedan chuckled, leaning down slightly to pat her head. Batter bristled lightly, but made no move or comment as Dedan straightened up, crossing his arms across his bare chest.

"Yeah, well, looks can be deceiving. I enjoyed reading in my downtime when I was Guardian of zone 1." The Player nodded slowly, blush fading from her face. She knew better than to try and put people in boxes. Shame on her.

The next book was _**Explanations**_. The Player grew agitated. "Well, this is a useless book. Only has the index. Wonderful." Nonetheless, she took down the page numbers and glanced it over. Oh, if only this was a complete book! She would have loved to learn more of this world's history and lore. The Batter relaxed as she put the book back and moved on. Dedan leaned in, smirking at the Batter.

"Touchy, ain't we?" He shoved him aside, following after his Player as Dedan snickered to himself. What did he know? The parasite knew nothing about him, about what he knew and had seen. Nothing. The Player was holding a completely blank book when the Batter joined her, no page numbers or anything. Just a scribble on one of the pages, barely legible despite her trying.

_I have run out of oxygen._

Disturbed, she put the book back. Didn't the creatures of this world breathe smoke? Why would someone here need oxygen? Deciding to think on it later, she moved on to the next book. It was titled _**The Cardinal Points**_…and was entirely upside down. Sighing, the Player flipped the book, only to find the text still upside down. Odd. Turning her head to the side, she started to read.

_It is not required to keep track of one's direction in the Pink Fortress. Painted on the walls are arrows pointing towards the right directions. On this page are printed the four symbols and so well as the four cardi—_it cut off, the next page listing the directions.

_(Arrow down) South_

_(Arrow right) East_

_(Arrow left) West_

_(Double Arrow up) North_

The Player rolled her neck, cracking it. That was uncomfortable. The Batter flinched at the noise, eyes wide. His Player put herself through such intense discomfort to decipher the book; how noble and selfless she was, putting the mission first! That said, he could not allow her to injure herself in such a manner again. Though minor, such injuries were a stain upon his tattered soul, an affront to his goal. He would not be so selfish as to let her do it again.

The next book was titled _**Bismark**_, which the Batter recognized to be the name of the city they were in. Probably just information about the city, he dismissed. However, when the Player opened the book, he realized it was not.

_For she chose Three Guardians to rule some of the Zones. The Fire Bird was chosen as the Lord of the Second Zone, the Eternal City of Bismark. They were the most…Undecipherable gibberish while the spectres were destroying the-_

_But the dynamics of the world soon drove the people mad. They forgot about their joys and eventually succumbed to their neurosis of fear and worries. They weren't…Meanwhile, the Flaming Winged Sovereign weeped in this throne, sadde—_It cut off there.

The pages were badly faded, but the Batter had no problem reading the words. The Fire Bird? That must be Japhet then. "Drat, I can't read most of this." The Player noted the page numbers and put the book back. "The Fire Bird wouldn't happen to be Japhet, would they Dedan?"

Dedan shifted, leaning against the shelf. "First time I ever heard a him being called by the name, but I can say it ain't out of the cards. Pretty likely the puffed up pidgeon would grace himself with a fancy name." Dedan shrugged. "Can't say for sure, though." The Player nodded.

The last book on the floor was called _**The Up Children Down**_. "Nonsensical name," the Player commented, the Batter agreeing. Flipping the book open, the Player stared. That was a hellish text to try and read. Actually, was it even in Common? "The heck does it say?" The Batter leaned over, careful not to brush his filthy body against his Player. It was Clear-Speech. The Batter puffed up, pleased to be of assistance to his wonderfully kind Player.

"_And so swarming in the Belly of the World, Seven-hundred thousands __**[of]**__ Children of the Sin gnawed at the justice put in place by the Queen during her peaceful reign. They are the physical manifestation of Evil Deed__**[s]**__ released up the world. Forever lost in their seething madness, they are unsalvageable and immortal. Only the Queen herself, at the time of the Final Confrontation, will have the Power to annihilate the Tainted power of the worm-child._" The Batter paused, wondering if he should continue. His Player's expectant face drove him on. "_Chapter 2- Of Apocalypse and Black Liches. All of the souls on exile for their sins will be tortured for eternity by the Legion of the Black Liches,_" He stopped, basking in the awed look his Player gifted him with. How generous of her, to think highly of his mediocre ability to read Clear. The moment was tainted by the contents he had just read, however. Lies written down to trick and beguile the masses, to convince them of the _Queen's_ worth. The words had felt like tar on his tongue, hot and thick.

"Hmm," His Player was pondering the text as she took note of the page numbers. "Well," she closed the book and put it back. "That's all the books on this floor. Shall we go up a level?" Neither Dedan nor the Batter objected as they moved up the stairs.

The third floor was split into four room, each attached to the central hallway. After glancing around, it seemed that there was only one real book per room. Moving to the first room, the Player cracked open the book. The pages were pink, with diamonds in the background, and one page was accompanied by a number four. "A playing card," she realized aloud. The page next to it had been torn out. She pulled the torn page she had out of storage and compared them. "Hmm, not a match." The page they had was the suit of hearts, with an eight. That said, if the other books on the floor were like this as well, that meant the book this page came from was here.

The page in the book was faded badly she realized, slipping her page away. It would be hard to read, but perhaps it was worth it. Sitting down on the floor, she leaned against the shelf, settling in to try and read the worn text. Dedan sighed, slipping down the adjacent aisle to look around, while the Batter stood over his Player, keeping watch.

_This is the story of the three Guardians chosen by the Queen to rule over the Zones, islets of Life lost in the Netherworld._ The Player paused. The Netherworld? As in, the Afterlife?

_The First Guardian, Dedan—_good thing he was down the other aisle, the Player thought—_was filled with Anger. Thanks to his strong determination and his body made out of Steel, he ruled his Zone with an iron fist._ Body made of Steel? She had been pretty close to Dedan, and he didn't look like he was made up metal. Perhaps it was metaphorically speaking, seeing as he was very muscular? The Player looked down, hiding her blush from the Batter. Best not continue that train of thought.

_The second one, Japhet, was good and generous. Due to his kind personality, he was loved by all. He was constantly on his feet, doing his best to provide safety and peace to his subjects. _The page ended there, the continuation torn out. The Player closed the book, and put it back. Japhet didn't sound so bad, if he was described as generous. Perhaps she wouldn't have to kill him.

"Hey, I found this in the other aisle." Dedan smacked a Joker down into her hand as she stood up. The Batter grimaced when she thanked him. Drat that parasite. The Player moved to the next room, and cracked open that book. It was the same text as the last book, only with a large spade in the middle. Closing the book, she thought. She needed to see the other books too.

As she moved to step out of the room, the Batter's head snapped up. He grasped her by the arm and yanked her behind him, hoping she would forgive his blasphemous roughness with her person. Where she had been standing two spectres dropped down, hanging upside down from the ceiling, chuckling. He swung his bat, easily dispatching them. Peering around, he did not see or feel others in the immediate vicinity. Still, he was a failure. He had let them get so close to his precious Player. He was scum, and he would not allow another spectre that close to her.

When she had fallen back into Dedan, the Player had spotted something on the wall. Brushing herself off, gave the Batter a quick smile. "Thanks! I didn't even see them." Going to inspect what was on the wall, she missed the Batter's relief at her forgiveness. How sweet his Player, forgiving his sins with an easy grace. He did not deserve to be in her presence.

Posted to the wall was a page torn out of a book, a three of clubs. Taking the page, the Player moved to head to the next room. She had a theory.

Gluing himself to her side as she moved through the building, he kept a constant watch for any others. Dedan was doing the same, much to his surprise. "I may not be able to hurt them, but at least I can warn her. Besides, I am quite literally dead, if she is." The Batter hummed at his response, still scanning the area as they moved.

The Player ignored them, focusing instead on solving the puzzle. The next book had a page with a two of clubs. She had been right; slipping the newly found page into the book, she watched it secure itself into the binding. Going around the floor—with two oversized, overprotective limpets attached—she swiftly replaced the pages on the walls into their respective books. As she slid the last page in, it occurred to her that she never read the stray pages. Sitting down, she took the opportunity to do so.

_The third one, Enoch, was cold yet fair. He created the a fifth Element which he distributed in his Zone, sugar. Inhabitants of his Zone quickly became dependent of this Magical substance. Although they were happy, they were disconnect__**[ed] **__from reality._

_According to some dark legends, the Queen lives with her Father in her room, creating ghosts to destroy the world they themselves had created. Some say that her beauty is comparable to the Heart of the Sun while others swear she is invisible. And yet, all those rumors are nothing but speculations._

The Player closed the book. A lead… to this Queen that Dedan had mentioned. But was it right? Were the rumors in this book true? It was too early to tell, but at least it was a starting point as to where these spectres were coming from. The Batter tightened his grasp on his bat. The Queen… It all kept leading back to her, didn't it. He seethed quietly as they made their way down to the reception desk, to let the Elsen know the books were fixed.

The Elsen in question was shaking nervously, eyes staring blankly into space when they arrived. "Ugh, little shits." Dedan grumbled a bit as the Batter moved to speak with it. No need for his Player to trouble herself with scum that was not fit to exist, let alone breathe the same smoke as her.

"The pages are back into their books." His deep rumble startled the jittery Elsen, who squeaked and wheezed in shock. It body began to shake harder.

"Ah… ha!" Its body was vibrating. "That… That's very good." Batter gripped his bat, moving his Player behind him and Dedan moved between it and her. There was something very off about this Elsen, more so than usual. "I… I'll let you up then. That… That's great…" It wheezed loudly, dust brushing from its lips. "The fourth floor's now accessible… for you and you only…" It made no indication that it was aware of its odd behavior, just watching them placidly. The Batter stayed between it and his Player as she moved up the stairs swiftly, not liking how it watched them.

No one spoke of what had just happened as they moved up to the fourth floor. The Player stopped to mess with a yellow cube in the stairwell, before they continued on. The Batter felt himself tense as they stepped on to the fourth floor. Something tingled across his shoulders, faint and cloying. It was similar to Dedan, similar to Sucrose. It was a sin, but it felt muffled.

As he examined the room, he caught sight of a cat approaching them, having descended the stairs at the opposite end. Well, the cat was not the Judge, that was for sure. It stopped in front of him, flicking its tail imperiously.

"Who…" It rasped, its voice crackling as if from disuse. "Who are you?" It dragged its eyes across him. "What is that in your hand?" Behind him, the Player shifted as she stood just outside the room. She wanted to look, but the Batter's body language advised against it. Dedan stepped up and into the room to observe.

"You are not the Judge." The Batter stated, watching the cat distrustfully. Something about it felt…off. It tilted its head, narrowing its eyes contemplatively. It released a strangled meow, before replying.

"The…" Its voice cracked with disuse, and the Batter realized it was male. "The Judge?..." The cat trailed off, flicking his tail back and forth. "No." He finally responded. "No, I am not." He stood up, stretching languidly. "My name is Japhet. I am the creator of this city." The Batter narrowed his eyes. Japhet? Was he not supposed to be a bird? Had Dedan lied to them? Cutting his eyes over to Dedan, the Batter was gratified to see confusion on his face. "I am also the one leading the phantoms, the royal instruments of my vengeance." The cat claiming to be Japhet let out another strangled meow as the Batter and Dedan stared at it.

Things just got a little weird.

* * *

*So as to slip in some language continuity, Common is English (as it is currently the world trading language in OUR world), and Clear is an unidentified language. In Dedan's fight (in-game) he has speech bubbles that said 'laugh' in Chinese, and the book _**The Up Children Down**_ contains text that is almost unreadable. I'll say that somewhere between the two is Clear, and for the purposes of the story, both count.

**According to the OFF Wikia—which was partially edited by the creator of OFF himself, Mortis Ghost—the Dalcorze method was created by Émile Jaques-Dalcroze (a Swiss composer, musician and music educator who developed eurhythmic, a method of learning and experiencing music through movement). The method involves teaching musical concepts through movements, like conducting. Solfege is one of the techniques used in the method to teach pitch, though hand signals.

So here we get a tad bit more of a look at the Player. Starting to clear up a question that was asked in the very beginning of this story: Is the Player in the game or not? Hints are being dropped, but no solid evidence. Also, a tad of foreshadowing in the title. Can you guess?


	17. zone 17: RELIE

Continuing from where we left off…

**WARNING: Rated PG-13 for minor swearing, an awkward battle and a healthy dose of common sense. **

* * *

"_You_ are the chief of the spectres?" The Batter did not even try to hide his incredulity at the statement. The cat looked affronted.

"Specifically, they are my arms, sent to me by the Queen to restore justice to this zone." The Batter grimaced. Always with the Queen, always did she interfere when she should just stay out. Meddling bitch.

Dedan recoiled, unseen by the cat. "The…the Queen?" His voice was uncharacteristically quiet, his disbelief palpable. "N…no. This cat is mad. He is not Japhet, and those Spectres were not from the Queen!" The Player watched him. That was right; he had been fighting to keep the spectres out of his zone when they were there. To hear that the monarch he served was responsible for them…Well, it was a good thing he didn't read the books downstairs is all.

"You must have been very determined to have set foot onto the stairs of this library," the cat continued, unknowing of Dedan's statement. Afterall, he could not hear him, see him. "I recognize in you a certain courage, an exceptional trait for a fear-riddled place such as this. However, my revenge will not leave anyone unpunished." He looked at the Batter with dead eyes. "Not the Elsen, not you, not even the entity I feel hiding behind you." The Batter raised his bat in confusion. Was he really going to fight a delusional cat? It had stated itself as a threat to his Player, but… It kind of lacked teeth. "Never have I felt something like that…" The cat meowed, flicking his tail. "No matter, you shall be the first to succumb to the blasts of my ectoplasmic army!"

The cat stepped forward, as the Batter readied for battle. "I do not need any spectres yet to eliminate you, you poor sport pajama-wearing clown." Hey. That was taking it a bit far. "I will finally get a taste of justice!" As he readied to leap at the Batter, the Player spoke up, having not seen any of this.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but are we about to beat up a cat?" The cat in question stopped, tilting his head. Odd, the voice that spoke sounded nothing like what he had expected.

"Oh? The entity speaks…?" The Batter stepped forward slightly as his Player pushed on his back. While not pleased with letting his Player in the room with a potential(?) threat, he felt he could handle the feline should it actually attack. The Player made eye contact with the cat, curious and incredulous over what was happening.

It was most certainly a cat. Not even with teeth, like the Judge. The Player blinked as the cat inspected her. He let out another meow, settling down on his haunches. "Your spirit is a valiant one…" Suddenly he leapt forward and the Batter swung, smacking his bat into the air borne feline and sending him tumbling back. "…and your arms are made in its image." He finished, getting up and eyeing the Batter. "I must confess that I may have underestimated you." He turned to face the Player again, ignoring how the Batter readied to strike again. The cat looked vaguely apologetic as it spoke to her. "Unfortunately for you, I would discard all manners as a gentleman when necessary. Especially for a new enemy." The cat screeched, causing her to grasp her ears to block out the high pitched wail. "Spectres, come to me! Dance together and echo the song of the righteous! The torment of men heals my wounds… Your bodies will feed the intangible spirits for eternity…"

Nothing happened.

"Phantoms?" Still nothing. The Player groaned, placing her head within her hands. This was not happening. "Phantoms, come to me! I command you!" She squeezed her eyes shut behind the battle visor, which had engaged when the cat had leapt. "Curses! By what magic, baleful human, do you manage to prevent my ectoplasmic acolytes from joining me?" He hissed angrily. "No matter! You will taste my wrath!" The Batter smacked the cat out of the air again, watching as it slid across the floor.

"This is just sad," Dedan deadpanned, watching from beside the Player. The Player groaned, not even looking.

"hhh… hhh… hhh…" The cat struggled to his paws. "Poor fool! It is not yet time for me to reveal my true nature." He flicked his tail, smug. "Still, know that you will gain nothing by waiting, obnoxious buffoon." The cat darted out a window, dropping something as he fled. The Batter recognized it to be an Add-On, but did not approach. His attention was on his Player, who still hadn't looked up. Was something wrong with her? Had she been hurt? He did not see how she could have been, but…

"What's wrong with you?" Dedan poked her in the shoulder, and the Batter smacked him for it. Dedan snarled, then looked down at her. Seriously, what was up with her? He couldn't see anything wrong. The Player was quiet, before looking up at them with wide, guilty eyes.

"We just beat up a delusional old cat!"

Ah. Well, yes. There was that.

* * *

Turned out the new Add-On's name was Omega, and the Player asserted that it was a 'support class'. Apparently if he took special damage in battle, Omega would be able to take care of it, but it couldn't attack like Alpha could. Odd, but useful.

"A…Are you alright?" The trembling voice of the Elsen behind the desk called out to them, making Dedan tsk in irritation. It coughed lightly, the smell of ash exploding out. "You didn't get hurt up there?" The Elsen did not wait for a response, blundering on. The Batter glowered at it. Why ask if you did not listen? "Well, at any rate… I saw a cat… I expect it to be by the south entrance…" The Player put her head in her hands, clearly still feeling guilty over what had happened. The Batter did not.

The Player heaved a deep sigh, chanting under her breath. The Batter strained to hear what she was saying. "…do it for the plot progression, do it for the plot progression…" He blinked. Well, that made no sense what so ever. His poor Player was so stressed, her words must be coming out wrong. Outside in the pink—though as more time passed, the Batter mused it might be more of a purple—sat a familiar figure.

He stiffened. He had no desire to deal with the grinning little vermin right now, or at any time, to be frank. After all, had he not just dealt with one delusional feline? Alas, his Player perked up upon seeing the cat and raced forward. "Judge!" Dedan leaned back on his heels, looking at the cat.

"The hell is that supposed to be? A finger puppet?" Looking down at Dedan's hands, the Batter conceded that the cat would fit his monstrous claws nicely. A pleasant thought on how to eliminate that annoying feline. The cat in question pricked its ears at his Player's call, his smile growing impossibly large.

"Ah, greetings, dear immaculate comrade!" He flicked his tail, purring with pleasure as the Player gave his head a scratch. "Has your journey not taken you to a place of optimum conditions? This is a drier area compared to previous surroundings. I must admit that I for one am delighted." The Judge chuckled, twining himself through her legs. "The feline gent is not very fond of rain."

The Player gave an amused smile. "No, I would imagine not. Especially such a distinguished Tom as yourself." The Judge preened as Dedan scoffed. The Batter slowly inched forward, ready to slip between the mangy creature and his Player at a moment's notice.

"Indeed. Elsewhile, I have picked up a bit of news you might find intriguing, considering your mission." The Judge stretched, moving to sit down. The Batter took his chance, moving between the pair. "I have heard from an old friend—" Who would be friends with you? "—that the shopping mall in the northern part of the city has fallen victim to ectoplasmic assaults…" Knew that already, fleabag. "Perhaps it would be wise for you to hurry on over there and illuminate it with your purifying light." That was said with far too much sarcasm for the Batter's liking, as the Judge watched him as he spoke. Mangy scum.

The Player laughed, the sound light. "That sound like a fine plan, my friend." Do not call that thing a friend. It did not deserve her admiration and regard in that manner. Or any manner, really. "We'll do just that then." Waving goodbye to the grinning feline, the Player slipped down the pink road toward the shopping mall. Dedan crossed his arms, tch-ing.

"Why are we listening to what that furball said? Seems like a fucking stupid idea." The Batter bristled. While he may harbor no love for the Judge himself, Dedan's questioning of his Player was sacrilegious! How dare he presume to know better than her? The Player stopped ahead of them, looking at the plastic sea. She was quiet, for a moment.

"_This being is known as The Batter,"_ she began quietly. _"You have been assigned to assist him."_ The Batter froze. She was assigned to him, like he had been assigned to her? It felt…wrong in a way, for someone to order one as pure as his Player around. _"The Batter has a very important mission, be sure he accomplishes it. Zone 0 is his first destination. Good luck." _That was all they told her, before sending her here? The Batter trembled with rage. No information, no report, nothing for his Player to grasp onto for direction. They had tossed her into the deep end with no idea how to swim, it would seem. That just wouldn't do. _"For more information, find the one called 'The Judge'." _The Batter relaxed himself forcefully, to avoid letting his Player see his disconcertion. But who was they, really? Who gave his Player her orders, and sent her into the cesspit that was this world?

The Player faced them, eyes blank despite the smile on her face. "That was what I was told coming into this world." Dedan gave a thoughtful hum.

"So some person, somewhere told you that listening to a grinning cat was the best course of action in your quest to 'purify'—" he gave air quotations here. "—the world? And you listened." It was quiet, the lapping of plastic at the metal shore loud. Red spread across the Player's face, as Dedan burst out in loud guffaws and the Batter sighed.

"Well, when you put it like that!"

* * *

So a tad bit of levity to make up for chapter 15's extremely dark themes and the sheer amount of book text in 16. Also, no one reviewed on 15… Too dark? Anyway, let me know what you all thought of these two chapters. Maybe also 15 if you feel up to it, as reviews let me know how I'm doing in terms of plot, character development and styling for areas. WITHOUT YOU, I HAVE NO FEEDBACK!

Review begging aside, seriously. Let me know if you notice anything off or have questions. I'm usually pretty obliging to answering them. Oh, and would anyone like a small Dedan OMAKE next chapter? I have one in mind for the events in this chapter...


	18. zone 18: REASSUME

So, I've been on an OFF writing kick. So many side stories about this universe are written up on my laptop, waiting to be inserted as Omakes. Oh, and a bunch of the chapters are written up too. Now it's just a matter of remembering to post them…

**WARNING: Rated R for Dedan and relatable situations.**

* * *

Why was it always so cold in malls, the Player wondered, subtly rubbing her arms as she walked behind the Batter, Dedan clomping behind her. She waved to Zacharie as they passed his booth, heading deeper into the mall. The Batter flicked his wrists lightly, twitchy around the knowing eyes of the merchant. What did he know? That fool knew nothing. Ignoring the man, he led the group into the next room. Glancing around, he noted that one end of the hall was completely blocked off, leaving only a single route open. Well, at least it wasn't a maze.

Stepping toward the stairs, the Batter drug his eyes over some of the ads. There was one for metal floors, an apology for the deterioration of the mall, and… pardon?

_Welcome to Gomez Galleries! May nothing stop your frenetic consumerism._

…Well then, at least they were blunt about it. The Batter shrugged off the oddity of the statement, and moved down the stairs, keeping an eye on his Player. She was his to protect, and he had to be vigilant, especially with that parasite leeching energy from her. What if she collapsed in this mall? He had to be careful. Reaching the bottom of the stairs, he froze. Dedan moved up next to him as the Player stepped into the room.

"Oh _hell_ no. Fuck this shit!" Dedan's expletives echoed in the maze of identical blue rooms and halls, ads drooping from their walls. The Batter was very much so inclined to agree. Those ads were the only difference between rooms he could see, and after a moment, his Player confirmed it.

"This is definitely a maze. Keep track of the ads; given the hint at the top of the stairs, I think those are our only chance at navigating this mess." She sighed, and the Batter winced. He was putting his precious Player through so much trauma and distress by making her accompany him on this quest. He was not worthy of her regard in that manner. He was such scum to inflict even his presence on her—which would undoubtedly continue, as he refused to leave her alone with the parasite.

_Handled carefully by the employees of zone 1, our meat is preservatives-free, guaranteed!_

The Batter casually ripped that ad down. It was worthless anyway; the whole zone was gone, purified. Nothing more would be coming out of there. As they continued on, with only Dedan's explosive swears to break the silence, the rooms began to blend together into a mess of boxes and ads.

_Our plastic chairs are specially designed without any dangerous edges._

What a claim to fame, that one.

The Batter swung his head back and forth between the rooms, searching for some differentiation—any difference at all would have been welcomed. Alas, nothing but countless boxes and bottles filled the blue rooms. Oh and giant, hairless rats called Massu. Every time one got close—relatively so, as in the Massu was in the room with her, as the Batter would not allow one closer than that—she shivered slightly. It felt like oil on her soul.

_Seven bottles of smoke, for the price of six!_

That one didn't even make sense, the Batter thought. A small exclamation from the Player drew his attention, and in turn, his bat.

"I got it! So, those ads, which we already knew were the key to navigating this maze, are different! Ads that are detailed, like this one, are the ones that lead us to the exit." Dedan eyed her dubiously, and the Batter whacked his head with his bat. His Player knew what she was talking about; clearly, she was wise enough to understand and figure out such a difficult puzzle. Dedan swiped at the Batter, just missing.

"Stop that, shitface!"

_Build your walls out of metal! In the event of an attack, their solidarity is assured!_

The Batter tilted his head as they continued. Would it stand up to him? The Batter pondered this as the Player saved at one of the yellow boxes—she insisted that they were going the right way, and that this was a 'check point'. He took her at her word.

_The Gomez Galleries offer you a large variety of boxes full of metal and plastic._

The Player eyed one of the mannequins they passed, moving to put the Batter between it and her. Something about those things always creeped her out. The Batter swelled with pride, sneering at Dedan victoriously. Once again, he was proven to be a superior protector.

_Gomez Luck Tickets are manufactured and tested by specialists._

"The fuck? They have specialists for _TICKETS?_" The Batter snorted, eyeing the parasite with distain. Of course they did. This world was full of redundant positions and corruption. Why would some piece of filth not take the opportunity to earn a little more?

_Depressed? Try Modestia!_

He'll pass on that one. And he wasn't depressed; he was realistic.

_Because life is so short… Try our Jokers!_

"Hey, I found a Monday!"

Endless blue rooms passed, with no noticeable difference—except for one store room, in which a lost Elsen had taken shelter. While the Player questioned it, Dedan lit up a cigar and began puffing, watching the interaction, and the Batter sat down on a crate, wiping black goo from his bat. Damn Massu.

"I'm lost…" The Elsen whispered, rubbing its hands together either in worry or out of the cold, which had been increasing. "I could make a fire with the boxes… to ward of the ghosts… but… that would be too dangerous." Less dangerous than the ghosts would be, but hey, what did the Batter care if some useless little meatdoll got itself killed? One less he had to deal with. Moving on, the group continued into the freezing mall.

_Our mannequins are certified sharp-edge free, and there-fore will not be hazardous to your health._

That sounded far too much like foreshadowing for the Player's liking. That had better not be foreshadowing. She would flip out if one of these things started moving.

_Got time to lose? Visit the Unproductive, __please._

Room after blue room passed, with the Player noting that it was getting warmer again, before they encountered another soul. A familiar chuckle echoed from a room up ahead, and the Batter sighed. Again with this thing.

The Judge was examining an advertisement for cat food, smirking decorously. "Is not this publicity so effective and efficient whilst defying he basics of consumer marketing?" The cat commented, tilting his head toward the Player. She gave a slight nod.

"Really? Again with the furball?" Dedan was ignored.

"I think it would, if perhaps it wasn't hidden so far back into this maze of a store." The Judge chuckled, flicking his tail and returned to examining the ad. The Batter glared at it.

"For silkier hair; the meat fountains of Alma," his tone was flat as he read this. Unbelievable. The Judge glanced at him condescendingly.

"Oh, you can read?" The Batter bristled, as the Judge dismissed him in favor of once again addressing the Player. Dedan chortled. "Anyway, I am glad to have found you. Maybe you can help me unravel the mystery that fate has placed before me." The Judge's grin shrank a bit, as the Player listened attentively.

"It turns out that my brother has been living in this area for many years. He has a special affinity for colours of the cool kind." The Judge flicked his tail. "Unfortunately, I have so far failed to cross his path. I have tried to betake myself to the roof of the library, where he resides. However, I found the door closed. Even the long hours of intensive, repeated meowing and compulsive scratching did not do a thing." Yes, because if I heard that, I would want to open the door to let you in too, you stupid vermin. "My request is as follows: If at the bend of a corridor you happen to see Valerie, give him my greetings."

"Got it. See you later, Judge." The Player moved off to leave the room, the Batter staring at the cat. He tightened his grasp on his bat, grinding his teeth. It would be so easy to rid himself of this mangy menace, but alas, not today. Soon though.

"Hey, fucktard! Let's move!" Dedan's deep screech dragged the Batter away from his murderous inclinations and had him following his Player—and the parasite—deeper into the store. Or so he thought. The next door was the entrance to the mall, and the trio found themselves standing exactly back where they started.

"Well this is fucking retarded," Dedan complained, chewing on his cigar. The Batter silently agreed.

"No look," the Player pointed. "A Pedalo recovery point. Remember the missing path to the amusement park? Maybe it will call one over to where the bridge used to be."

* * *

Turned out the Player was right. Unfortunately, Pedalos were designed for two maximum, and the fit for two overly tall and muscular males and one petite female was tight. It wasn't happening.

"Look, I'll just sit on the back of the Pedalo. As long as you guys don't rock it too badly, I'll be fine." The Player moved to sit on the back of the Pedalo. Two large hands, one clawed and one pure white, grasped her shoulders tightly.

"No way IN hell."

"'Unacceptable."

The Player tossed her hands up in the air. "Then what do you two suggest? Cause it's either this, or I sit on your laps!" She blushed slightly at the thought of sitting on the two males. An awkward situation, but enjoyable at the same time. After all, both were clearly well built. Clearly, they would never go for the idea. The Batter held too much animosity toward Dedan to let him touch her so freely, and Dedan would be far too grabby to let her sit only partially on him.

Silence.

"Oh fuck yes _please_."

"Acceptable."

Well, fuck her then.

The Player ended up sitting on top of the both of them, one leg on each. The Batter ignored the swell of pleasure and pain he felt at the contact—it burned so good, his skin crawling and writhing— and punched Dedan when his hands got a little too close to his Player. He was letting the parasite have the privilege of his Player on his lap; he was pushing it with anything else.

As they floated over to the island, the Player looked out at the seemingly endless sea of plastic. "I wonder if there is anything over there…" The Batter glanced over, noting the small splot of purple on the grey sea. An island, far out in the plastic waves; how odd.

"I see an island," he informed her, and so they detoured to the small island. Nothing much of note about it, other than a small chest containing a Min-Woo tunic, so they swiftly made their way back to the main island Dedan indicated. The island itself was just an entry point to an under-plastic tunnel that traveled for a way.

"This zone is much more structurally advanced compared to the other two," the Player mused, climbing the stairs behind the Batter. Dedan snorted, flexing his muscles as he stretched. The Pedalo had been far too cramped.

"Yeah, Japhet was always a sucker for big buildings and high rises, birdbrain that he was." He came up behind the Player, who had stopped dead at the top of the stairs. Before her lay a maze of fences and balloons, leading up to a giant building with a sign proudly proclaiming PARK. Moving forward, the Batter poked a balloon. It burst loudly, causing him to jump back and scowl. Dedan laughed at him.

"What, scared of a fucking balloon you pansy?" Oh that's it. As the Batter went to go beat Dedan to a pulp, the Player moved to inspect the balloon. Inside the tattered rubber remains was a Fortune Ticket. Picking it up and slipping it into the inventory, the Player looked at her party. The Batter was trying to smash Dedan's face into a fence as the general clawed at the Batter's face. She sighed, moving through the line toward the building.

If there was an _actual_ amusement park up ahead, she was not waiting for them.

* * *

Okay guys, few things to cover here. First up is that there is now an accompanying FanFic to this story called Corrupted Save. It will contain all of the Omakes from this story (and some that weren't in it…) so head over to check it out. Second is that things are going to get really depressing soon. Don't worry, it will gain some levity but for a short period it will be super Angsty. Third and final, the promised Dedan Omake!

* * *

**DEDAN (Ruler[s] of my Soul)**

_Who holds your allegiance, Dedan? The Queen, or the Player?_

The Queen… No, this filthy feline was lying. There was no way the Queen would ever… Would she? No, he had to believe. She wouldn't lie to him, not to her General.

Dedan sat at the bottom of the stairs in the library, puffing on a cigar. Screw being polite to Japhet, he needed it right now. The Queen… she knew he fought against the spectres. She wouldn't send more…she wouldn't send any! It was a lie. He took another drag, eyes fixed on the Player. She was taking a quick drink from a bottle in her hand, carefully keeping away from the shelves.

And then there was her. She had saved him—after damning him, granted—and seemed to truly be trying to do her best for the zones. He cracked a grin. She reminded him of the Queen. Both were so idealistic, so naively trusting of those under them. However, unlike the Queen, the Player's underling actively plotted against her, and led her astray. He snorted. Fucked up in the head, that guy… if he was a guy. Something about how the Batter moved, how he talked, how he simply existed set Dedan on edge. It reminded him too much of BEFORE.

Dedan bit the cigar in half, standing up and snuffing it out with his boot. Well, in any case, he was bound to the Player now, not the Queen. He had to obey the Player now, not the Queen. Moving to stand by her side as they strode out of the library, he contemplated how things had turned out. All in all, could have been a lot worse, he figured. That said, Dedan stubbornly ignored the little voice in his head, reminding him of how _things were_. How things had been BEFORE. He shoved the voice away, narrowing his eyes as the Player spoke with a grinning cat, and made a snarky comment, one he did not remember.

No, the Player was different. The Queen was different. They weren't like himself. They would never make the choices he had, the decisions he had. And things were different now, he told himself, as they walked away from the feline. He inquired to why they listened to the cat, and grew incredulous at the answer.

When he said as much, the Player's face grew bright red, and Dedan felt the worries melt away as he laughed. She wasn't like that, see? He could feel that she was pure, and he could see that she was good.

Things were different now, remember?

* * *

Guys. Guys. Guys, I am so tired right now. You have no idea. Thankfully, I can sleep after posting this. Love it, review it. Okay, maybe just one of those. Either one, really. See you guys next chapter.


End file.
